The Present Perfect Continuous tense

Affirmative:

I have been studying for three hours.

They have been working on this project since last week.

She has been practicing the piano all morning.

 

 

Negative:

I have not been exercising regularly lately.

They have not been attending meetings as often as they should.

She has not been feeling well for the past few days.

 

 

Question:

Have you been learning a new language recently?

Have they been working on this project for a long time?

Has she been taking dance classes for a while now?

 

Present Perfect Continuous  is formed using the auxiliary verb have or has followed by been and then the present participle form of the main verb (verb ing).

 

 

Form	Affirmative	Negative	Question
Subject +	I have been studying	I have not been exercising	Have you been learning a new
Present Perfect	They have been working	They have not been attending	language recently?
Continuous	She has been practicing	She has not been feeling	Have they been working on this
Tense		well for the past few days.	project for a long time?
			Has she been taking dance classes
			for a while now?

 

Present Perfect Continuous tense is used to describe an action that began in the past, has continued up until now, and may still be ongoing.

It is typically used to describe actions or situations that have a connection to the present moment.

Usage:

To describe an action that started in the past and is still happening now:

She has been studying for three hours. (She started studying in the past and is still studying now.)

They have been working on this project for weeks. (They started working on the project in the past and are still working on it now.)

 

 

To describe an action that has recently stopped or just finished:

He has been playing basketball all morning. (He just stopped playing basketball.)

We have been cleaning the house for the past few hours. (We have just finished cleaning the house.)

 

 

To describe a repeated action that has been happening over a period of time:

They have been going to the gym every day this week. (They have gone to the gym repeatedly over the course of the week.)

She has been practicing her guitar every evening for a month. (She has practiced her guitar repeatedly over the course of the month.)

 

 

To describe a temporary situation that is happening now:

I have been living in this city for two months. (The speaker is currently living in the city.)

He has been feeling sick for a few days. (He is currently experiencing illness.)

 

 

 

 

Adverbs  in Present Perfect Continuous:

Adverbs can be used in  Present Perfect Continuous  to add more detail or emphasis to the action being described.

Adverbs of time, frequency, duration, and degree can be used in Present Perfect Continuous.

 

Adverbs of time:

I have been working on this project since this morning.

She has been practicing the piano all day long.

 

Adverbs of frequency:

They have been going to the gym regularly for the past month.

He has been eating healthier lately.

 

 

Adverbs of duration:

I have been studying Spanish for three years.

She has been living in Paris for six months.

 

 

Adverbs of degree:

He has been working very hard on this project.

They have been enjoying their vacation immensely.

 

Adverbs can also be placed at the end of the sentence after the verb and its complement:

She has been practicing the piano all day long, without taking any breaks.

Remember that adverbs can modify different parts of the sentence, so their placement can vary depending on the intended meaning.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Click here The Present Perfect Continuous tense

Click here The Future Perfect in the Past

Click here The Past Perfect tense

Click here The Past Perfect tense

Click here The Present Perfect tense

Click here The Future Continuous tense

Click here The Past Continuous tense

Click here The Present Continuous tense