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All 7 Continuous Tenses in English 01

The document provides an overview of the seven continuous tenses in English, explaining their formation and usage. It highlights the importance of not using continuous tenses with stative verbs and offers examples for each tense, including present, past, and future forms. Additionally, it includes a test section with answers to reinforce understanding of the continuous tenses.

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Aslia Sangcopan
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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
63 views5 pages

All 7 Continuous Tenses in English 01

The document provides an overview of the seven continuous tenses in English, explaining their formation and usage. It highlights the importance of not using continuous tenses with stative verbs and offers examples for each tense, including present, past, and future forms. Additionally, it includes a test section with answers to reinforce understanding of the continuous tenses.

Uploaded by

Aslia Sangcopan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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All 7 Continuous Tenses in English

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Continuous Tenses
A continuous action is an action that is ongoing or in progress at a particular time.
We use continuous tenses to help us describe these actions. They are formed with ‘to
be’ plus a verb in the -ing form.

Stative Verbs
DO NOT use the continuous tense with stative verbs. These are verbs that describe a
state and not an action. Some common stative verbs are: know, understand, like,
hate, have, mean.

❌ I’m having a fever. ​


Even though the fever is ongoing, you are using the verb have to describe an illness /
a state… NOT an action.

✅ I have a fever.​
You are describing your current state / condition.

✅ I’m having such a good time! ​


You are describing the action: have a good time.

Present Continuous
We use this to describe actions that are happening right now, actions that are
temporary, or actions that are developing.

Happening now:

■​ We are eating dinner.


■​ I am recording a video.

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Temporary:

■​ My sister is living in Paris.


■​ I’m renting a car until I buy a new one.

Process:

■​ My daughters are learning French.


■​ He is planning his next holiday.

Future Continuous - Will be


We use this to describe continuous actions that will (or won’t) be happening at a
specific time in the future.

■​ We will be eating dinner when your mum arrives tonight.


■​ I won’t be working Saturday afternoon.
■​ I will be showing you how to use the new software during the training session
later today. (something certain, more formal)

Note: “I will show you” - An action that will start and finish in the future, but the
emphasis is not on the continuous nature of this action.

Future Continuous - Going to be


We use this in a more conversational, relaxed setting. It is also often used for planned
actions in the near future, regardless of formality.

■​ In this video, I am going to be showing you how to bake cookies.


■​ Should we meet at 7? - No, I am going to be having dinner at that time.
(sounds more personal and focused on intent)
■​ She’s going to be working late tonight, so she asked me to pick up the kids.

Past Continuous
We use this to describe continuous actions that happened in the past…

a) At the same time as something else:

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■​ I was cleaning while the children were playing in the garden.
■​ I was crying while watching the film.

b) and was interrupted by something else:

■​ I was cleaning the house when you called.


■​ The children were eating dinner when their mum came home.

Not the same as the simple past!

■​ He walked to the pharmacy. (completed action in the past)


■​ He was walking to the pharmacy when he ran into an old friend. (one action
was interrupted by another)

Present Perfect Continuous


This tense is used when we have a continuous action that started in the past and is
still true now. Or it can refer to actions that have recently stopped but still have an
effect in the present. We form it using “have been” + verb-ing.

■​ I have been living in Spain since 2005. (started in 2005, is till true now)
■​ We have been learning Italian for 3 years. (started 3 years ago, still true now)
■​ I’m exhausted because I have been running. (I am not running now, but the
effect is still present.)


Past Perfect Continuous
We use this when we have 2 actions in the past and one continuous action started
before the next one. We form it using “had been” + verb-ing.

■​ I had been looking for my wallet for hours before Molly found it!
■​ My daughter had been feeling ill all morning, so we took her to the doctor’s
office.

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Future Perfect Continuous
We use this for an action that will have been happening for a certain period of time
at a specific point in the future. We form it using “will have been” + verb-ing.

■​ In the year 2028, I will have been living in Spain for 15 years. (a prediction)
■​ You will have been baking for 3 hours when the guests arrive this evening.

‘Will have been’ or ‘will have’ – what is the difference?

■​ He will have been teaching English for 20 years in June. (emphasises the
duration)
■​ When he retires, he will have taught English for 40 years. (future perfect tense,
emphasises the completion of an action)

Test
Fill in the blanks with the correct form of the continuous tense.

1.​ Right now, I __________ (watch) a new documentary on Netflix.


2.​ She __________ (live) in London for six months, but she plans to move soon.
3.​ When I called you last night, you __________ (cook) dinner.
4.​ By next year, we __________ (study) English for five years.
5.​ At this time tomorrow, I __________ (fly) to New York.
6.​ He __________ (wait) for an hour before the manager finally arrived.
7.​ I __________ (not/work) on Saturday afternoon, so we can meet then.
8.​ She __________ (cry) while watching the emotional scene in the movie.
9.​ Next month, I __________ (teach) English for 20 years.
10.​We __________ (renovate) our house until we find a better place to live.
11.​They __________ (not/sleep) when the fire alarm went off.
12.​I __________ (practice) the piano all afternoon before the recital started.
13.​This evening, he __________ (give) a speech at the university conference.
14.​By the time we arrive, they __________ (travel) for six hours without a break.

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Answers
1.​ am watching (Present Continuous)
2.​ is living / has been living (Present Continuous / Present Perfect Continuous)
3.​ were cooking (Past Continuous)
4.​ will have been studying (Future Perfect Continuous)
5.​ will be flying (Future Continuous)
6.​ had been waiting (Past Perfect Continuous)
7.​ won’t be working (Future Continuous - negative)
8.​ was crying (Past Continuous)
9.​ will have been teaching (Future Perfect Continuous)
10.​are renovating (Present Continuous - temporary action)
11.​weren’t sleeping (Past Continuous - negative)
12.​had been practicing (Past Perfect Continuous)
13.​will be giving / is going to be giving (Future Continuous)
14.​will have been travelling (Future Perfect Continuous)

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