2.2.B: Present Perfect Progressive Tense
- Page ID
- 359490
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Present Perfect Progressive Tense
| Subject | Have/Has | Been | Verb + -ing | Rest of Sentence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | have | been | studying | English for two years. |
| You | have | been | working | here since Monday. |
| We | have | been | waiting | for the bus for an hour. |
| They | have | been | living | in Tokyo since 2020. |
| The children | have | been | playing | soccer since 3 PM. |
| Mei-Hui | has | been | painting | landscapes all morning. |
| Aleksandr | has | been | learning | guitar for six months. |
| Maria | has | been | cooking | dinner for the past hour. |
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Form |
have/has + been + verb-ing
Carlos has been studying Russian literature for three hours.Mei-Hui and Yuki have been practicing calligraphy since morning. |
| Positive | Liheng has been working at the tech company since 2020. Rosa and Sadaf have been volunteering at the hospital all week. Elvira has been teaching piano lessons for five years. |
| Negative | Shoko hasn't been feeling well lately. Ahmed and Li haven't been attending the cooking classes recently. Keiko hasn't been practicing her violin since the concert. |
| Question | Has Dmitri been learning Ukrainian folk dances? Have you been waiting for the bus long? How long has Lina been living in Brazil? |
| Uses | 1. Actions that started in the past and continue to now: Hiroshi has been studying medicine for four years. (He still studies medicine) 2. Recent activities with present results: Sarah has been baking cookies. (The kitchen smells wonderful now) 3. Repeated actions over a period of time: The students have been taking practice tests every week. |
| Time Expressions |
Duration: for + period of time
for two hours, for several months, for ages Starting Point: since + specific time
since Monday, since 2019, since childhood Recent Time:
lately, recently, all morning, all day, this week |
| Signal Words | Common indicators: How long...?, all day/week/month, lately, recently, for, since, still, just "How long have you been waiting?" "I've been waiting for twenty minutes." |
| vs. Present Perfect | Present Perfect Progressive: Emphasizes duration and ongoing nature Pablo has been reading that novel. (Still reading, focus on duration) Present Perfect: Emphasizes completion or result Pablo has read that novel. (Finished reading, focus on accomplishment) |