1.6: Present Continuous Tense
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Present Continuous (Progressive) Tense
Form and Meaning: The present continuous tense is formed by using the present tense of the verb To Be (am, is, and are) plus the present participle (ing form) of the verb. Therefore, there must be subject/verb agreement when using the present continuous tense. It emphasizes the action of the verb's being in progress as the speaker is speaking. It is often formed by using now, but now can mean right now as I speak, or now meaning at all the time in the present, or anything else where the action continues. Native speakers use the present continuous tense most of the time when they are speaking about any action in progress. For actions that happen all the time or are general occurrences, native speakers use the simple present tense.
Structure:
I am going
coming
am not studying
driving
'm not enjoying
He is going
She is not coming
It isn't studying
driving
enjoying
We are going
You are not coming
They aren't studying
driving
enjoying
Am I going ?
Is he coming
she studying ?
it driving
Are we enjoying
you going ?
they coming
Affirmative
I am teaching you English this quarter.
You are studying English with me in Room CC 210.
My sons are working in good jobs.
My son, André, is writing music for a company named eMusic.
My wife and I are raising our sons in Seattle.
My friend is writing a book that she wants to publish in June or July.
Negative
I am not speaking French to my students right now
My friend isn’t drinking beer at home now.
As I write this exercise, my sons are not helping me.
It is not raining today.
My children aren’t playing video games with my wife.
***None of my students is studying in the library at this time.
Interrogative (Question Form)
Am I teaching you to speak Chinese or English?
Is the sun shining today?
Are all of you from foreign countries?
Is it snowing in the mountains now?
Am I listening to the radio as I explain this exercise?
Exercise 26: Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the verb, please.
1. My son (come) ------------------------- home from school now.
2. I (write) ------------------------- this sentence right now.
3. My wife (sit) -------------------------- on the sofa now.
4. They (buy) ------------------------ groceries at the market now.
5. We (study) ------------------------ the present continuous tense this week.
6. The girl (do) -------------------------- her homework in the living room.
7. You (think about) --------------------------- grammar as you do this exercise.
8. The women (wear) -------------------------- beautiful clothes.
9. He (sing) -------------------------- a song in the shower now.
10. My son (play) ------------------------ the violin now.
11. The lady (turn around) ------------------------- in the story.
12. She (give) ------------------------- a reward to the old man.
13. The boys (draw) ------------------------- pictures in their notebooks.
14. I (carry) ------------------------- my books to class now.
15. It (rain) ------------------------- very hard outside today.
16. We (listen to) ---------------------- the radio right now.
17. You (answer) ------------------------- these questions now.
18. The dog (bite) ------------------------ her bone now.
19. The boy’s mother (feel) ------------------------- sick today.
Exercise 27: Answer the following questions in the negative, please. Use complete sentences.
1. Are you riding on the bus now?
2. Am I writing this exercise with a pencil?
3. Are you fighting with anyone right now?
4. Is it freezing outside in Seattle today?
5. Are you biting an apple now?
6. Are we drawing pictures in class now?
7. Is class beginning right now?
8. Am I driving my car right now?
9. Are we going to the cafeteria today?
10. Is my wife feeding my sons right now?
11. Is the sun shining in Seattle today?
12. Are you flying like a bird today?
Exercise 28: Fill in the correct verb form, please.
1. We ---------------------------- (study) grammar this quarter.
2. My son ------------------------ (not drive) to my sister's house right now.
3. It ---------------------------------- (rain) outside now.
4. The boy and his friends -------------------------- (walk) to the store to buy some milk.
5. I -------------------------------- (not listen) to the radio at this time.
6. My sons ----------------------- (not attend) church today.
7. I ------------------------------ (not plant) any plants in my garden now.
8. The sun -------------------------- (shine) today.
9. You --------------------------- (learn) the present continuous tense now.
10. Everyone in the school --------------------------- (get) ready to learn.
11. The boys in the car --------------------------- (drive) around and --------------------------- (look at) girls today.
12. I --------------------------- (not work) in my garden as I write this exercise.
13. What -------- the girls ------------------- (make) for dinner tonight?
14. Where -------- the student ------------------- (study) today?
15. The baseball player --------------------------- (not play) in the game today.
16. My sons and I --------------------------- (not help) my wife clean the house today.
17. --------- you ------------------- (watch) television right now?
18. How many hamburgers -------- the boy ------------------ (eat) in the restaurant now?
19. -------- the police -------------------- (look for) you right now?
Exercise 29: Change the following sentences to the negative, please.
1. You are taking a test in your math class now.
2. The day is getting darker as you take this test.
3. My wife and son are arguing as I write this examination.
4. The vegetables in my garden are growing nicely now.
5. All of the boys are carrying their books to class now.
6. The dog and the cat are sleeping together in the dog’s cage.
7. I am wearing a t-shirt and pants as I write this exam.
8. Some students are studying in the library this morning.
9. Most of you are using pens to write your notes during class.
10. You are answering the last question in this exercise.
11. We are all watching television now.
12. Some students are wearing watches.
Exercise 30: Answer the following questions in complete sentences, please.
1. What are you doing right now?
2. What am I doing right now?
3. Are you sitting down or standing up as you write these answers?
4. Is it raining outside?
5. What classes are you taking this quarter?
6. Is the sun shining as you write these answers?
7. Are you using a pen or a pencil to write your answers?
8. Who is typing these questions?
9. Is your mother watching you write these answers?
10. Is the television playing while you answer these questions?
11. Am I asking or answering these questions?
12. Are you listening to music now?
Exercise 31: Change the following sentences from statements to Yes/No questions, please.
1. We are living in a very nice city.
2. Some people are wearing traditional clothes in class today.
3. I am using my computer to write these sentences now.
4. My wife is working at home this morning.
5. A dog is barking in my back yard right now.
6. Something is burning on the stove now.
7. I am wearing a tie as I write this exercise.
8. An old lady is talking to my wife on the phone right now.
9. Both of my sons are working at their jobs this morning.
10. Some boys are playing football in the park this morning.
11. It is raining hard outside today.
12. A student is helping a teacher to carry some books to her office now.
How to Make Information Questions
Another name for information questions is WH questions because most of the time the question words begin with the letters WH. Teachers sometimes say information questions and other times WH questions. There is no difference; they are the same.
Information questions ask for more than just a yes or no answer. For example, when I say, “Are you listening to me now? I expect you to answer either yes or no. However, if I ask, Who are you listening to now? I expect an answer to the question Who. That answer would be, for example, Don, you, the teacher. All of these would be correct; yes or no would not be correct. For another example, if I ask Which room are you sitting in right now? I expect you to say We are sitting in room CAS 210. If you answered that question with yes or no, I would laugh because I am expecting some information, not yes or no.
Information questions always begin with an interrogative word. Below is a list of the interrogative words and their meanings in English:
Who replaces people in the subject position
Whom replaces people in the object position in formal English
Which replaces a choice of more than one possibility
What replaces things in the subject and object positions
Whose replaces a possessive noun or a possessive adjective
Where replaces a place
When replaces time
What time asks for a specific time
Why asks for a reason
How much asks for a non-countable quantity
How many asks for a countable quantity
How asks for a method or means of doing something
What kind of asks for a description of something
Be careful when making questions with these words. Many times foreign speakers of English when making questions ask for some information using the WH word and then answer using BOTH the WH word and the information in the answer. DO NOT give the information in the answer.
Examples:
Where are you putting the book on the table now? On the table is the answer, so don’t ask for it by name in the question.
What is the woman buying a refrigerator? A refrigerator is the answer, so don’t say it in the question.
Examples of Correct Answers to WH Questions
This class is over at 10:45.
Question: What time is this class over? Answer: 10:45
My friends are cleaning their house today.
Question: What are my friends cleaning today? Answer: their house
My son is playing with two of his friends.
Question: How many of his friends is my son playing with? Answer: two
The boy’s family is sitting in the kitchen.
Question: Where is the boy’s family sitting? Answer: in the kitchen
The dog is burying a bone in the back yard.
Question: What is the dog burying in the back yard? Answer: a bone
Bob is using Paul’s book.
Question: Whose book is Bob using? Answer: Paul’s
The plane is arriving at 6:00 tonight.
Question: What time is the plane arriving? Answer: at 6:00 tonight
My father is speaking to the man in the blue suit.
Question: Which man is my father speaking to? Answer: the man in the blue suit
The girl is crying because the dog stole her ball.
Question: Why is the girl crying? Answer: because the dog stole her ball
Making Information Questions with the Present Continuous Tense
Exercise 32: Make information questions with the word following the sentence, please.
1. The boys are taking their books to school with them.
Where
2. My sister is smoking a cigarette now.
What
3. We are learning the present continuous in English now.
What
4. My students are coming to school now.
When
5. You are learning to speak English in class every day.
When
6. The dog is following the boy to school. [Be careful.]
Who
7. I am writing this exercise now.
What
8. You are studying English this quarter.
When
9. The teacher is sitting in his office now.
Where
10. My sister is living in Rhode Island now.
Where
11. We are taking the car to the garage.
Where
12. My sons are using their computers in their room.
What
13. The woman is singing a beautiful Brazilian song on the radio right now.
What
14. My wife is speaking Portuguese with her friends in the living room.
Which language
15. The plane is flying over the ocean.
Where
16. Some boys are playing with my neighbor’s dog in the park.
Whose dog
17. I am writing these sentences on my computer.
Which sentences
18. The boy is holding three books.
How many books
19. The old man is walking slowly down the street.
How
20. I am talking to Mary and Sue.
Who(m)
Exercise 33: Change the following sentences to WH questions with the words given, please. Do Not make questions about the subject of the sentences.
1. My old classmate is coming to Seattle for a vacation.
Where
Why
2. The students are listening to the teacher in class now.
Who(m)
When
3. The girl is buying a birthday present for her father in K-Mart.
Whose
What
4. The woman is chasing the thief down the sidewalk.
Where
Who(m)
5. I am waiting for my student’s brother at the Pine Street bus stop in Seattle now.
Whose
Where
6. The woman is waiting for her son because she needs a ride to work.
Who(m)
Why
Exercise 34: Make WH questions with the words that follow the sentences, please.
1. The boy is running to school now.
Where
2. My son is carrying my wife’s pots and pans for her.
Whose
3. Some students are wearing traditional clothes to class today.
What kind of
4. My student is talking to the old lady in the blue dress.
Which
5. My son and wife are watching television right now.
What
6. I am writing my lesson plans in the kitchen this evening.
When
7. The student is carrying ten pencils in her bag.
How many
8. A mechanic is fixing my wife’s car for me.
What
9. My dog is taking a walk with my son right now.
Who(m)
10. Some students are studying very hard because they want to learn English fast.
Why
11. They are thinking about their friends in other countries now.
Who(m)
12. My neighbor’s son is playing the drums in his house.
What
13. The vacation from school is beginning soon.
When
14. The weather is getting colder.
How
15. I am writing this exercise at home right now.
Where
16. My son is living in an apartment near my house.
Where
17. My wife is teaching my son how to cook chicken in our kitchen now.
Who(m)
18. My wife is watching a travel program on TV now.
What
Exercise 35: Make Information Questions (WH Questions) with the Present Continuous Tense for the Subject of the following sentences, please.
1. The boy is playing with his dogs now.
Who
2. Mohammed and Akbar are speaking in the hallway.
Who
3. The girl’s brother is looking for her lost books.
Whose brother
4. The three brothers are fighting with their sister.
How many brothers
5. Some women are discussing their husbands.
Who
6. I am thinking about my sister and brother.
Who
7. The car is blocking the intersection.
What
8. The dying man is asking to see his sons.
Which man
10. Three dogs are licking the boy’s face.
How many dogs