Present Continuous
You will learn to:
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Use verbs to describe an ongoing event.
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I am eating...​
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She is wearing...
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They are watching...​​​​​
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Present Continuous Examples
This is used to describe an action which is ongoing. It started in the past but has not finished.
Subject + verb 'be' + continuous form
First, let's learn these verbs.
Let's divide the Present Continuous into 'Short term' and 'Long term'.
Short term - within one day
Subject + verb 'be' + continuous verb + noun / noun phrase
He + is + wearing + glasses.
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He is wearing glasses.
Get-up
Now
12:00pm
Go to bed
9:00am
He put the glasses on in the past.
Now, he is still wearing the glasses so the action is not finished. It will finish in the future.
The action (wearing glasses):
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started in the past
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is still going on
Subject + verb 'be' + continuous verb
She + is + reading
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She is reading.
Wake-up
Now
7:30pm
Go to bed
7:00pm
She started reading the book
Now, she is still reading and has not yet finished. It will finish in the future.
The action (reading a book):
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started in the past
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is still going on
Present Continuous Exercises
Subject + verb 'be' + continuous verb + noun / noun phrase
They + are + wearing + baseball caps
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They are wearing baseball caps.
Answer
He is reading a kindle.
Answer
They are doing homework.
Extend your sentences
Subject + verb 'be' + continuous verb noun phrase, noun phrase and noun phrase
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He is wearing a blue suit, a white shirt and a blue tie.
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He is wearing a blue suit, a white shirt and a blue tie.
Subject + verb 'be' + continuous verb noun phrase and noun phrase
Answer
He is wearing blue jeans and brown shoes.
Subject + verb 'be' + continuous verb noun phrase and noun phrase
Answer
She is wearing a black top and a red skirt.
Answer
He is wearing a white shirt and yellow trousers.
Long term - over more than a day
Subject + verb 'be' + continuous verb + noun / noun phrase
Jane + is + reading + a book.
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Jane is reading a book.
1st March
Now - 6th March
Future
3rd March - Jane started reading a book
Now, she is still reading the book - it is unfinished.
Note that Jane does not need to be reading all the time. She can stop and start but the action only finishes when the book is finished.
Subject + verb 'be' + continuous verb + noun / noun phrase
Timmy + is + doing + a jigsaw.
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Timmy is doing a jigsaw.
Monday
Now - Wednesday
Future
Tuesday - Timmy started doing a jigsaw.
Now, he is still doing the jigsaw - it is unfinished.
Present Continuous Examples - Negative
Subject + verb 'be' + not + continuous verb
We make the verb 'be' negative, not the continuous verb. It is used to say the subject is not doing an action.
I am not wearing a black tie.
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We are not doing our homework.
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He isn't reading that file.
Present Continuous Exercises - Negative
Subject + verb 'be' + not + continuous verb
She isn't wearing a red hat. She is wearing a black hat.
She verb 'be' not reading a thin book. ___ ___ _____ a thick magazine.
Answer
She is not reading a thin book. She is reading a thick magazine.
She ____ not _____ a ____ dress. ___ ___ _____ a ____ _____.
Answer
She is not wearing a black dress. She is wearing a red dress.
Present Continuous Examples - Questions (?)
Closed questions
Closed questions ask a specific question and want a 'yes' or 'no' answer.
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Two people are meeting. They have not seen each other. They are asking questions to help find each other.
Julie
Julie: Are you wearing a t-shirt?
Gary: No, I'm wearing a grey suit. Are you wearing a jumper?
Julie: Yes, I'm wearing a white jumper, glasses and a brown hat.
Gary: I'm not wearing a hat.
Gary
Open questions
Open questions are general and the person answering is asked to give information.
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Let's look at Gary and Julie meeting again, but with open questions.
Julie: What are you wearing?
Gary: I'm wearing a grey suit. What are you wearing?
Julie: I'm wearing a white jumper, glasses and a brown hat.
That was much easier for Julie and Gary.
What are you reading?
I'm reading manga.
This open question is asking someone for the kind of or name of the book they are reading.
What are you doing?
The most popular open question is 'What are you doing?' because it allows for any verb to be in the answer.
I'm doing nothing.
I'm reading a book.
I'm going to bed.
What are you doing?
I'm going to the bank.
I'm drinking a glass of wine.
I'm eating dinner.