Present Perfect Continuous - Present Perfect Continuous Tense. Present perfect continuous tense. Present Perfect Continuous (Present Perfect Progressive)

If you carefully study, you will notice that the main meaning of this time is to convey the connection of a certain process with the present moment. To put it simply, a couple present perfect & present perfect continuous very similar to present simple & present continuous. One tense in each pair serves to convey facts (results in the case of perfect simple), and the other indicates a process. But these “processes” are not alike.

present perfect continuous rules and examples

So let's consider present perfect continuous rules and examples. There are 3 main cases when you can (and even need) to use present perfect continuous .

rule	example	translation
To express a process that lasted for a period of time but has just ended. It is connected with the present, a certain result is visible.	I have been tidy ing up the house for three hours so I look tired.	I cleaned the house for three hours, so I look tired.
To express an action that began some time ago and is still ongoing at the time of speech.	Look! She has been read ing that book since yesterday.	Look! She has been reading that book since yesterday.
To convey an action that has occurred regularly over a long period of time and is still occurring.	Every morning he drinks the same coffee. He has been do ing this for five years.	Every morning he drinks the same coffee. He has been doing this for five years.

Features of using the present perfect continuous. Questions and denials

U consumption present perfect continuous very similar to the ordinary perfect tense. Just for present perfect continuous It is not the 3rd form of the semantic verb that is used, but the ing form. You probably noticed the ending –ing in each example. If you need to form a negative, use 'haven't been' And 'hasn't been'. Using the present perfect continuous in questions it is limited by the need to place the auxiliary verb before the subject. Please note the following examples.

(-) She hasn't been ask ing any questions for three days. – She doesn’t ask anything for 3 days.

(?) Has it been rain ing here? - Was it raining here?

How to train the difference between the present perfect and the present perfect continuous?

We hope this article is on the topic “ present perfect continuous rules and examples"helped you figure it out. We wish you success in conquering the heights of the English language and will be happy to provide assistance in learning it!

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>>The Present Perfect Progressive Tense

Using the Present Perfect Progressive

The Present Perfect Progressive is used to express an ongoing action that began in the past, is still ongoing at the present time, and in some way summarizes the duration of that action.

Jeff and Emily haven't been playing golf for three hours.

General question(OB)

Has Jeff been tennis playing for two hours? - Yes, he has.

Alternative question(AB)

AB= OB + or + OB?

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The present perfect continuous tense is a phenomenon, at first glance, a little paradoxical in English: How can an action be both accomplished and ongoing? Let's understand it with a specific example:

In the above example, we considered an action that had been going on for some time, starting at some point in the past, and had just ended. From time to time Continuous groups this form received a mandatory duration of action, and from the times of the Perfect group - the presence of a certain result from the accomplished action (in our case, these are raw leaves, grass and soil).

However, situations are possible when an action that has lasted up to the present moment does not end, but continues further. In such situations, the Present Perfect Continuous is also used, but the temporary duration of the action up to the present moment is usually indicated, for example:

In this case, the specified duration of action represents some significant result for the present.

Affirmative sentence

The structure of the sentence in the Present Perfect Continuous is based on a combination of elements of those time groups that are included in the name: Present indicates that the first (and main) auxiliary will be in the present tense, Perfect- to the fact that this auxiliary verb will be, and then will be followed by the third form of a certain verb, and Continuous - to the fact that the third form will contain the verb to be, followed by a semantic verb with the ending –ing. The result is the following construction scheme:

have/has been Ving

Here are some examples of affirmative sentences with a predicate in the present perfect continuous tense:

Negation

When constructing a negative sentence in this tense form, you should remember that the particle not added to the first auxiliary verb ( haven't/hasn't). Let's trace this phenomenon with specific examples:

Due to the specifics of this tense form, its use in negative sentences is somewhat limited to a narrow context.

Questions

General questions with a predicate in a given tense form are constructed by moving the auxiliary verb to the first place:

When building special question a question word is added to the same scheme, which will take first place in the sentence:

Question to the subject also begins with a question word - Who) orWhat (what)- but in this case it replaces the subject, plays its role, therefore there cannot be another subject in the sentence, and the words are arranged in the following pattern:

Alternative question involves a choice between two or more options, expressed by means of a conjunction o r/or and is constructed in the same way as the general question:

A “tag” question necessary to express doubt about the content of a particular sentence, also called dividing question, is constructed using the auxiliary verb haven’t/hasn’t for the affirmative and have/has for the negative sentence, followed by the corresponding subject expressed by a personal pronoun:

...affirmative...,haven't/hasn't +SP?	It has been snowing, isn't it?	It snowed, didn't it?
	Maria has been learning English for two years, hasn't she?	Maria has been studying English for two years now, hasn't she?
	Tom has been smoking too much recently, hasn't he?	Tom smokes too much lately, isn't it?
...negative...,have/has +SP?	You haven't been looking for us, have you?	You weren't looking for us, were you?
	Ann hasn’t been working for two hours, has she?	Anne hasn't worked for two hours, has she?
	The girls haven't been swimming, have they?	Girls didn't swim, did they?

Use

As mentioned above, the predicate in the Present Perfect Continuous expresses an action that began in the past, lasted for some time, and either just ended or continues, but in such a situation its duration is indicated:

The need to use the Present Perfect Continuous tense form in a sentence is often indicated by marker words - prepositions since(c; since) and for(during, throughout).

Controversial situations in choosing the use of the Present Perfect and Present Perfect Continuous tenses often cause confusion. In order to avoid misunderstandings, let us consider the difference in the scope of use of these two similar tense forms using specific examples:

Present Perfect	Present Perfect Continuous
the action is completed and it creates a certain result in the present	the action lasted until the present moment, and it is this duration that is important
The walls in the room were white. Now they are orange. Tom has painted them.	Tom's clothes are covered in paint. He has been painting his room.
The walls in the room were white. Now they are orange. Tom painted them.	Tom's clothes are covered in paint. He was painting his room.
the result is important - painted walls, no matter how much time was spent on the painting process	it doesn’t matter whether the room is completely painted, that is, the result is not important, but the duration is important, which led to stained clothes

The tense form of the Present Perfect Continuous, although limited to a narrow context, is found in living English speech quite often, proving the fact that situations in which the duration of the action is important are quite widespread.

Education Present Perfect Continuous
(have/has been + …-ing)

Present Perfect Continuous (Present Perfect Progressive) is formed with the help to be in the form ( have been, has been) and the present participle form of the semantic verb: I have been working.
When adding endings to verbs -ing sometimes there are changes in their spelling, for example have/hav ing. More about .

Affirmative form		Negative form		Question form
I	have been working	I	have not been working	Have	I	been working?
he she it	has been working	he she it	has not been working	Has	he she it
we you they	have been working	we you they	have not been working	Have	we you they

Abbreviated forms:

‘ve= have
's=has
haven't= have not
hasn't= has not

Using the Present Perfect Continuous

1. An action that began in the past, continued for some period before the present, and which is still ongoing at the present time. The period of time during which the action lasted is always indicated or implied: marker words ( for … hours/weeks/years – for … hours/weeks/years, since 10 o’clock – since 10 o’clock, since morning – since morning, since 2005 – since 2005). Often the Present Perfect Continuous is translated with an adverb already.

Examples: I have been working since 9 o'clock in the morning. – I work from 9 o’clock in the morning.
She has been living in Venice for 2 years. – She has been living in Venice (for) 2 years.

2. The action is ordinary, constant, i.e. happening in general, but indicating how long the action takes (used with marker words). If it is not indicated how long the action takes, then instead of the Present Perfect Continuous, use (action that was performed at the time of speech) or (usual, constant action).

Examples: It has been snowing for 2 days. – It has been snowing (already) for 2 days. (indicating how long the action takes - within 2 days)
It is snowing. - It's snowing. (without specifying how long the action takes)
She has been studying French for 10 years. - She teaches French(already) 10 years. (indicating how long the action takes place - within 10 years)
She is studying French. – She is learning French. (without specifying how long the action takes)

3. Sometimes the Present Perfect can be used instead of the Present Perfect Continuous. If the speaker wants to emphasize the duration of an action, the Present Perfect Continuous is used, and if the speaker wants to emphasize the fact of the action, the Present Perfect is used.

Examples: I have been working there since 1997. -I have been working here since 1997. (the goal is to emphasize the duration of action)
I have worked there since 1997. – I have been working here since 1997. (the goal is to emphasize the fact of the action)

4. Used in interrogative sentences with question words ( since when - from what time, since when, how long - how long, how much time), if we are talking about the period that precedes the moment of speech.

Examples:How long have you been sitting here? – How long have you been sitting here?

5. Not used with verbs that do not have the Continuous form ( to be, to have, to love, to hate). Instead of the Present Perfect Continuous, the Present Perfect is used. More about .

Examples: How long have you known her? – How long have you known her?

There are difficult points in English grammar. The Present Perfect Continuous tense is one of these. But don’t panic and be disappointed in advance; it’s better to figure it out together.

The main question

If not all, then many have heard about the main difficulty of the English language - tenses. Therefore, in the first lessons of language learning, the question about the number of tenses is asked. But, as they say, the devil is not so black as it is painted (the devil is not as terrible as he is painted). There are only three tenses in English - Present, Past and Future. However, depending on what action is in front of us, four aspects are distinguished in each time - Simple, Continuous, Perfect, Perfect Continuous.

Today we are talking about how the Present Perfect Continuous is formed and when to use it.

Education formula

The Present Perfect Progressive tense refers to unusual tenses. It combines the “incompatible” - the Perfect aspect with the Continuous aspect in the Present. This leads to the “double” formula of education: (have/has + 3rd form of the verb) + (to be + verb + -ing) = have/has + been (3rd form of the verb to be) + verb + -ing . In other words, this tense form is formed using a “double” auxiliary verb have/has been (not translated, but changed according to persons and numbers) and the main verb with the ending - ing (translated, but not changed).

How this “works” in practice can be seen in the table:

Verb form in Present Perfect Continuous Passive voice (Present Continuous Perfect in passive voice) is built according to the formula “subjects + have/has + been + being + main verb in the 3rd form”, but is used in oral speech and texts extremely rarely (This monument has been being built for 50 years - This monument was built over 50 years)

Negation

Negative sentences in the Present Perfect Progressive are built using the same formula, but with the addition of a negative particle not (not) between two auxiliary verbs: subjects + have/has + not + been + main verb + -ing .

Question

Interrogative sentences in English have reverse word order. The formation of a question in the Present Perfect Continuous also follows this rule: Have/has + subjects + been + main verb + -ing?

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As a rule, special questions in the Present Perfect Continuous begin with the question words How long? (how long?) and Since when? (from when?). They are, one might say, time markers (How long has it been snowing? - How long has it been snowing?)

Use

The aspects Perfect (Perfect) and Continuous (Continuous) affect not only the formula for the formation of the Present Perfect Continuous tense, but also the cases of its use. On the one hand, it describes an action with a result. On the other hand, it emphasizes its duration in time. So, despite the long and slightly scary name, it does not have many functions and they are easy to remember:

To describe events that begin in the past and continue up to the present:

Alice has been swimming since morning - Alice has been swimming since morning (Alice started swimming in the morning and still continues to do this)

My grandfather likes news. He has been watching news on TV for two hours - My grandfather loves the news. He watches the news on TV for two hours.

To describe events that have recently begun, have been going on for some time, have just ended and have a visible result in the present:

This time is characterized by indicator words that emphasize the duration of the action: recently, lately, all day, since, for.

A famous scientist has been recently developing new research programs - A famous scientist has recently developed new scientific research programs.

What have we learned?

The discussed rules and examples of the Present Perfect Continuous prove that appearances can be deceiving. The long formula of formation and the confusing name of this temporary form are only an outer frightening shell. In fact, everything is much simpler: it has only two functions. The first is to indicate the completion of the action and its result in the present. The second is to emphasize the duration.