CONTINUOUS VERB

TENSES
SIMPLE VERB CONTINUOUS
1. PRESENT CONTINUOUS
2. PAST CONTINUOUS
3. FUTURE CONTINUOUS

PERFECT VERB CONTINUOUS

1. PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS
2. PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS
3. FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS
SIMPLE VERB CONTINUOUS

1. PRESENT CONTINUOUS
2. PAST CONTINUOUS
3. FUTURE CONTINUOUS
SIMPLE VERB CONTINUOUS

 PRESENT CONTINUOUS

  AFFIRMATIVE NEGATIVE QUESTION

       
I am I am not Am I
I playing. playing. playing?
he, He is He is not Is he
she, it playing. playing. playing?
you,
we, You are You are not Are you
they playing. playing. playing?
SIMPLE VERB CONTINUOUS

 PRESENT CONTINUOUS
 am with the personal pronoun I.
 Is with the personal pronouns he, she or it (or
the singular forms of nouns.)
 Are with the personal pronouns you, we, they
(or the plural form of nouns.)
Uses of PRESENT CONTINUOUS
1. Actions taking place at the moment of speaking (now).

HE IS PLAYING FOOTBALL.
 The action is going on now.
Signal words like now, at the
moment are often used to
emphasize that the action is
taking place at the moment of
speaking. Signal words are not
really necessary expressed by
the tense itself.
Uses of PRESENT CONTINUOUS
2.Arrangements for the near future.

I’M GOING TO THE THEATRE

TONIGHT.
 In the example you can see that
the tickets are already bought.
 So we are talking about an
arrangement for the near future.
 To make clear that the action is
not going on now, we usually use
signal words like tonight,
tomorrow, next Friday, at
noon.
Uses of PRESENT CONTINUOUS
3. Actions taking place only for a limited period of time.

JIM IS HELPING IN HIS BROTHER’S

FIRM THIS WEEK.
 Here we are talking about a time
limit.
 Jim does not usually work in the
firm; he is still at school and
wants to earn some extra money
during his holidays.
 To make clear that there is a
time limit, we usually use signal
words, e.g. this week/month/
year.
Uses of PRESENT CONTINUOUS
4. Actions taking place around now(but not at the moment of speaking.

I’M STUDYING FOR MY EXAMS.

 This action takes place around

now and only for a limited period
of time, but not at the moment
of speaking.
 we don’t have to use signal
words here, but we often find
signal words in such sentences,
e.g. now, at the moment.
Uses of PRESENT CONTINUOUS
5. Development, changing situations.

THE POPULATION OF CHINA IS

RISING VERY FAST.
 The sentence describes a
development from one situation
to another.
 Signal words are not that
common here, only sometimes
the change of situation is
emphasized by using more and
more.
Uses of PRESENT CONTINUOUS
5. Repetition and Irritation with “Always”

HE IS ALWAYS COMING LATE TO

CLASS.
 The present continuous with
words such as “always” or
“constantly” expresses the idea
that something irritating or
shocking often happens. Notice
that the meaning is like Simple
Present, but with negative
emotion.
 Remember to put the words
“always” or constantly
between “be” and “verb +ing.”
Other examples:
HE IS CONSTANTLY TALKING. I DON’T LIKE THEM BECAUSE THEY
I WISH HE WOULD SHUT UP. ARE ALWAYS COMPLAINING.
ACTIVE PASSIVE
 Right now, Tom is writing  Right now, the letter is
the letter. being written.
exercises:
 PRESENT CONTINUOUS
Using the words in parentheses, complete the text below with the appropriate present
continuous tense.


1. Shhhhh ! Be quiet! John (sleep) _________. 

2. Don't forget to take your umbrella. It (rain) _____________. 

3. I hate living in Seattle because it (rain, always) ___________. 

4. I'm sorry I can't hear what you (say)__________  because everybody (talk)__________  so

loudly. 

5. Justin _____________(write, currently)  a book about his adventures in Tibet. I hope he can
find a good publisher when he is finished. 

6. Jim: Do you want to come over for dinner tonight?

Denise: Oh, I'm sorry, I can't. I (go) __________ to a movie tonight with some friends. 
SIMPLE VERB CONTINUOUS

 PAST CONTINUOUS

  AFFIRMATIVE NEGATIVE QUESTION

       

I, he, she, it I was playing. I was not playing. Was I playing?

you, we, Were you

they You were playing. You were not playing. playing?
SIMPLE VERB CONTINUOUS

 PAST CONTINUOUS
 WAS with the personal pronouns I, he, she or
it (or the singular forms of nouns.)
 WERE with the personal pronouns you, we,
they (or the plural form of nouns.)
Uses of PAST CONTINUOUS
1. puts emphasis on the course of an action in the past.

HE WAS PLAYING FOOTBALL.

Uses of PAST CONTINUOUS
2.two actions happening at the same time in the past.

WHILE SHE WAS PRERARING

DINNER, HE WAS WASHING THE
DISHES.
Uses of PAST CONTINUOUS
3. action going on at a certain time in the past.

WHEN I WAS HAVING

BREAKFAST, THE PHONE
SUDDENLY RANG.
Uses of PAST CONTINUOUS
5. The action or situation had already started before this time but had not finished.

WHEN THE PHONE RANG, SHE WHILE WE WERE HAVING THE

WAS WRITING A LETTER. PICNIC, IT STARTED TO RAIN.
Uses of PAST CONTINUOUS
6. Specific Time as an interruption

LAST NIGHT AT 6 PM, I WAS YESTERDAY AT THIS TIME , I WAS

EATING DINNER. SITTING AT MY DESK AT WORK.
Uses of PAST CONTINUOUS
6. Atmosphere

WHEN I WALKED INTO THE OFFICE,

SEVERAL PEOPLE WERE BUSILY TYPING,
SOME WERE TALKING ON THE PHONE,
THE BOSS WAS YELLING, AND
CUSTOMERS WERE WAITING TO BE  In English we often use a
HELPED. series of parallel actions to
describe the atmosphere at
a particular time in the
past.
Uses of PAST CONTINUOUS
7. Repetition and Irritation with “Always”

HE WAS ALWAYS COMING LATE TO

CLASS.
 The past continuous with words
such as “always” or “constantly”
expresses the idea that
something irritating or shocking
often happened on the past. The
concept is very similar to the
expression “used to”but with
negative emotion.
 Remember to put the words
“always” or constantly
between “be” and “verb +ing.”
Uses of PAST CONTINUOUS
Other examples:
HE WAS CONSTANTLY TALKING. I DON’T LIKE THEM BECAUSE THEY
I WISH HE WOULD SHUT UP. WERE ALWAYS COMPLAINING.
Uses of PAST CONTINUOUS
7. While vs. When

 Clauses are groups of words which

 I was studying when she have meaning, but are often not
called. complete sentences. Some clauses
 While I was studying, she begin with the word “when” such as
“when she called” when it bit me”.
called. Other clauses begin with “while” such
as While she was sleeping and while
he was surfing . When you talk about
things in the past, "when is most often
followed by the verb tense Simple
Past, whereas “while” is usually
followed by Past Continuous. While”
expresses the idea of “during tha
time”. Study the examples below.
They have similar meanings, but they
emphasized different parts of the
sentence.
PAST CONTINUOUS

ACTIVE PASSIVE
 I was studying when she  While I was studying , she
called. called.
PAST CONTINUOUS
 Use the past continuous tense
 1.My brother and sister ________  (play) tennis
at 11am yesterday.
 2 .______(be)you still working at 7pm last night?
 3.At 8.30am today I  __________ (drive) to work.
 4.We  ______(be)sleeping at 11pm.
 5.Why  ______(be) he having lunch at 4pm?
 6.I  met John in town yesterday.
He__________  (shop). 
 7.Mary_________  (wait) for me when I arrived. 
SIMPLE VERB CONTINUOUS

 FUTURE CONTINUOUS

  AFFIRMATIVE NEGATIVE QUESTION

       

Will I be
I, he, she, it I will be playing. I w ill not be playing. playing?

you, we, You will not be Will you be

they You will be playing. playing. playing?
SIMPLE VERB CONTINUOUS

 FUTURE CONTINUOUS
 WILL BE with the personal pronoun I.
 WILL BE with the personal pronouns he, she
or it (or the singular forms of nouns.)
 WILL BE with the personal pronouns you, we,
they (or the plural form of nouns.)
 Uses of FUTURE CONTINUOUS
1. Interrupted Action in the Future.

I WILL BE WATCHING TV WHEN SHE

ARRIVES TONIGHT...
 Use the Future Continuous to
indicate that a longer action in
the future will be interrupted by
a shorter action in the future..
 Remember this can be a real
interruption or just an
interruption in time.
Uses of FUTURE CONTINUOUS Other
examples:
I AM GOING TO BE STAYING AT THE
I WILL BE WAITING FOR YOU WHEN
MADISON HOTEL, IF ANYTHING HAPPENS
YOUR BUS ARRIVES. AND YOU NEED TO CONTACT ME.
 Uses of FUTURE CONTINUOUS
2.Specific time as an Interruption in the Future

TONIGHT AT 6 PM, WE ARE GOING AT MIDNIGHT TONIGHT ,WE WILL STILL

TO BE EATING DINNER. BE DRIVING THROUGH THE DESERT.
Uses of FUTURE CONTINUOUS
3. Parallel Actions in the Future
I AM GOING TO BE STUDYING AND
HE IS GOING TO BE MAKING DINNER

 When you use the Future

Continuous with two
actions in the same
sentence, it expresses the
idea that both actions will
be happening at the same
time. The actions are
parallel.
Uses of FUTURE CONTINUOUS
other examples:
TONIGHT, THEY WILL BE EATING DINNER,
DISCUSSING THEIR PLANS, AND HAVING A WHILE ELLEN IS TALKING,
GOOD TIME TIM WILL BE LISTENING.
Uses of FUTURE CONTINUOUS
4. Atmosphere in the Future
IN ENGLISH, WE OFTEN USE A SERIES OF
PARALLEL ACTIONS TO DESCRIBE ATMOSPHERE
AT A SPECIFIC POINT IN THE FUTURE.

 When I arrive at the party,

everybody is going to be
celebrating. Some will be
dancing. Others are going
to be talking. A few people
will be eating pizza, and
several people are going to
be drinking beer. They
always do the same thing.
FUTURE CONTINUOUS

ACTIVE PASSIVE
 At 8:00 p.m. tonight , John  At 8:00 p.m. tonight , the
will be washing the dishes. dishes will be being
washed by John.
PRESENT PERFECT VERB
CONTINUOUS
1. PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS
2. PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS
3. FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS
PERFECT VERB CONTINUOUS

 PRESENT PERFECT VERB CONTINUOUS

  AFFIRMATIVE NEGATIVE QUESTION

       
I have not been Have I been
I I have been playing. playing. playing?
Has he been
he, she, it He has been playing. He has not playing. playing?
you, we, You have been You have not been Have you beens
they playing. playing. playing?
PERFECT VERB CONTINUOUS

 PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

 HAS BEEN with the personal pronouns , he,
she or it (or the singular forms of nouns.)
 HAVE BEEN with the personal pronouns I,
you, we, they (or the plural form of nouns.)
Uses of PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

JAMES HAS BEEN TEACHING AT THE 1. DURATION FROM THE PAST

UNIVERSITY SINCE JUNE. UNTIL NOW
 We use the Present Perfect
Continuous to show that
something started in the past
and has continued up until now.
“For five years”, for two weeks”
and since Tuesday are all
durations which can be used
with the Present Perfect
Continous.
WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING FOR SHE HAS BEEN WORKING AT THAT
THE LAST 30 MINUTES? COMPANY FOR 3 YEARS?
Uses of PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

RECENTLY , I HAVE BEEN FEELING

REALLY TIRED
2.RECENTLY, LATELY
 You can use the Present Perfect
Continuous WITHOUT a
duration as “ for two weeks”.
Without the duration, the tense
has a more general meaning of
“lately”. We often use the words
“lately “ or ” recently” to
emphasize the meaning.
SHE HAS BEEN WATCHING TOO HAVE YOU BEEN EXERCISING
MUCH TELEVISION LATELY. LATELY?
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS
ADVERB PLACEMENT

 The examples below show the placement for

grammar adverbs such as: always, only,
never, ever, still, just, etc.
 Examples:
 You have only been waiting here for one
hour.
 Have you only been waiting here for one
hour?
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS
NOTE: Present Perfect Continuous is less commonly used in its passive form .

ACTIVE PASSIVE
 Recently, John has been  Recently, the work has
doing the work.  been being done by John.
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

 1.I'm exhausted. I_______________(study) in

the library all day.
 2.It_______________ ( snow) a lot this week.
 3. your brother and sister been getting along?
4.How long ______(you/teach)  German?
 5. We _______(watch) TV for 3 hours.
 6. You _______(work)  too hard today.
PERFECT VERB CONTINUOUS

 PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS

 HAD BEEN with the personal pronouns , he,
she or it (or the singular forms of nouns.)
 HAD BEEN with the personal pronouns I,
you, we, they (or the plural form of nouns.)
Uses of PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS

THEY HAD BEEN TALKING FOR OVER 1. DURATION BEFORE SOMETHING

AN HOUR BEFORE TONY ARRIVED. IN THE PAST
 We use the Past Perfect Continuous
to show that something started in
the past and continued up until
another time in the past. For” five
minutes” and “for two weeks” are
both durations which can be used
with the Past Perfect Continuous.
Notice that this is related to the
Present Perfect Continuous;
however, the duration does not
continue until now, it stops before
something else in the past.
HOW LONG HAD YOU BEEN YOU HAD BEEN WAITING THERE FOR
WAITING TO GET ON THE BUS? MORE THAN TWO HOURS WHEN SHE
FINALLY ARRIVED.
Uses of PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS

JASON WAS TIRED BECAUSE HE HAD 2. CAUSE OF SOMETHING IN THE

BEEN RIDING A HORSE. PAST
 We use the Past Perfect Continuous
to show that something started in
the past and continued up until
another time in the past. For” five
minutes” and “for two weeks” are
both durations which can be used
with the Past Perfect Continuous.
Notice that this is related to the
Present Perfect Continuous;
however, the duration does not
continue until now, it stops before
something else in the past.
SAM GAINED WEIGHT BECAUSE BETTY FAILED THE FINAL TEST
HE HAD BEEN OVEREATING. BECAUSE SHE HAD NOT BEEN
ATTENDING CLASS.
Past Continuous vs. Past Perfect Continuous

 If you do not include a duration such as "for five

minutes," "for two weeks" or "since Friday," many
English speakers choose to use the Past
Continuous rather than the Past Perfect
Continuous. Be careful because this can change
the meaning of the sentence. Past Continuous
emphasizes interrupted actions, whereas Past
Perfect Continuous emphasizes a duration of time
before something in the past. Study the next slide
below to understand the difference.
Past Continuous vs. Past Perfect Continuous

PAST CONTINUOUS PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS

He was tired because he was He was tired because he had been
 . exercising so hard exercising so hard.

 THIS SENTENCE  THIS SENTENCE

EMPHASIZES THAT HE EMPHASIZES THAT HE WAS
WAS TIRED BECAUSE HE TIRED BECAUSE HE HAD
WAS EXERCISING AT THAT BEEN EXERCISING OVER A
PERIOD OF TIME. IT IS
EXACT MOMENT.
POSSIBLE THAT HE WAS
STILL EXERCISING AT THAT
MOMENT OR THAT HE HAD
JUST FINISHED.
PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS ADVERB PLACEMENT:

 The examples below show the placement for

grammar adverbs such as: always, only,
never, ever, still, just, etc.
 Examples:
 You had only been waiting there for a few
minutes when she arrived.
 Had you only been waiting there for a few
minutes when she arrived?
PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS
NOTE: Passive forms of the Past Perfect Continuous are not common .

ACTIVE PASSIVE
 Chef Jones had been The restaurant's fantastic
preparing the restaurant's dinners had been being
fantastic dinners for two prepared by Chef Jones for
years before he moved to two years before he moved
Paris. to Paris.
PRESENT PERFECT VERB
CONTINUOUS
 FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS
 WILL HAVE BEEN with the personal
pronouns , he, she or it (or the singular forms
of nouns.)
 WILL HAVE BEEN with the personal
pronouns I, you, we, they (or the plural form
of nouns.)
PRESENT PERFECT VERB
CONTINUOUS
 FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS
 IS GOING TO HAVE BEEN with the personal
pronouns , he, she or it (or the singular forms
of nouns.)
 ARE GOING TO HAVE BEEN with the
personal pronouns I, you, we, they (or the
plural form of nouns.)
Uses of FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS

THEY WILL HAVE BEEN TALKING FOR OVER 1. DURATION BEFORE SOMETHING
AN HOUR BY THE TIME MONICA ARRIVED. IN THE FUTURE
 We use the FUTURE Perfect
Continuous to show that
something WILL CONTINUE up
until a particular event or time in
the future. For” five minutes”
“since Friday “and “for two
weeks” are both durations which
can be used with the Future
Perfect Continuous. Notice that
this is related to the Present
Perfect Continuous; however, the
duration does stops at or before
a reference point in the future.
SHE IS GOING TO HAVE BEEN WORKING AT
HOW LONG WILL YOU HAVE BEEN
THAT COMPANY FOR THREE YEARS
WHEN IT FINALLY CLOSES. STUDYING WHEN YOU GRADUATE?
MANNY WILL BE TIRED WHEN HE GETS
HOME BECAUSE HE WILL HAVE BEEN 2. CAUSE OF SOMETHING IN
JOGGING FOR OVER AN HOUR. THE FUTURE
 Using the Future Perfect
Continuous before another
action in the Future is a
good way to show cause
and effect.
Future Continuous vs. Future Perfect Continuous

 If you do not include a duration such as "for five

minutes," "for two weeks" or "since Friday," many
English speakers choose to use the Future Continuous
rather than the Future Perfect Continuous. Be careful
because this can change the meaning of the sentence.
Future Continuous emphasizes interrupted actions,
whereas Future Perfect Continuous emphasizes a
duration of time before something in the future. Study
the next slide to understand the difference.
Future Continuous vs. Future Perfect
Continuous
HEHe
WILL BE tired
will be TIRED BECAUSE
because HE WILL
he will be He will be tired because he will have been
BE EXERCISING SO HARD.
exercising so hard. exercising so hard.

 THIS SENTENCE  THIS SENTENCE

EMPHASIZES THAT HE EMPHASIZES THAT HE
WILL BE TIRED BECAUSE WILL BE TIRED BECAUSE
HE WILL BE EXERCISING HE WILL HAVE BEEN
AT THAT EXACT MOMENT EXERCISING FOR A
IN THE FUTURE. PERIOD OF TIME. IT IS
POSSIBLE THAT HE WILL
STILL BE EXERCISING AT
THAT MOMENT OR THAT
HE WILL JUST HAVE
FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS

 ADVERB PLACEMENT
 The examples below show the placement for grammar
adverbs such as: always, only, never, ever, still, just, etc.
 Examples:
 You will only have been waiting for a few minutes when her
plane arrives.
 Will you only have been waiting for a few minutes when her
plane arrives?
 You are only going to have been waiting for a few minutes
when her plane arrives.
 Are you only going to have been waiting for a few minutes
when her plane arrives?
FUTURE PERFECT CONTINUOUS

ACTIVE PASSIVE
 The famous artist will have  The mural will have been
been painting the mural being painted by the
for over six months by the famous artist for over six
time it is finished. months by the time it is
finished.
 The famous artist is going  The mural is going to have
to have been painting the been being painted by the
mural for over six months famous artist for over six
by the time it is finished. months by the time it is
finished.
The end