3.3.1: The Continuous Tenses in English (Active Voice)

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Don Bissonnette
South Seattle Community College

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The Continuous Tenses in English (Active Voice)

Present Continuous Tense

I          am
He        is           studying       now.
She       is         eating           right now.
It          is          sleeping        as I speak.
We       are
You       are
They     are

The present continuous is used in situations that are in progress as the speaker is speaking. It emphasizes the action of the verb at this time.

Past Continuous Tense

I          was
He      was
She      was
It       was
                      studying       when I got home from work.
                      eating    when the doorbell rang.
                      sleeping        when John came home.
We       were
You      were
They     were

The past continuous is used when two actions occurred in the past at the same time. One action was in progress when another action interrupted it. It can also be used alone to emphasize the action of the verb.

Future Continuous Tense with Will and other Modals and Quasi-Modal Verbs

I          will
He might
She should          be          studying tonight.
It     ought to       be          eating later on this evening.
We must            be          sleeping         next week.
You       may
They    have to

The future continuous with will and other modals stresses the on-going action of the modal in the future time. Oftentimes, it is used with two actions in the future.

Present Perfect Continuous Tense

I          have             been
We    have             been
You      have             been
They     have             been     studying since 10:00 o’clock.
                                been     eating all day long.
He       has              been sleeping         for three hours.
She       has              been
It          has            been

The present perfect continuous says that an action began in the past, continues to the present, and may continue to the future. It stresses that the action of the verb is in progress and not finished as the speaker is speaking.

Past Perfect Continuous Tense

I           had been
He       had been
She       had been    studying       but stopped before his father came home.
It          had been eating           and then decided to go for a walk.
We        had been sleeping        so didn’t feel like going out later in the evening.
You       had been
They      had been

The past perfect continuous tense is used when two actions occurred at different times in the past. It emphasizes the first action had been in progress just before the second action began. It says that the first action began and finished before the second began.

Future Perfect Continuous Tense

I              will have      been
You          will have      been
We           will have      been
They   will have      been     studying for two hours before she gets home.
He          will have      been     eating           with my friends before I join my family.
She         will have   been     sleeping         in the living room before going out (or
It            will have      been                           before she goes out).

The future perfect continuous tense talks about an action in the future which will be in progress before something else happens in the future.