Present Continuous

We use Present Continuous to talk about a temporary idea or something that is happening at the time of speaking.

Let’s check how the Present Continuous is formed:

Affirmative: SUBJ + TO BE + ING

I am working now.

Negative: SUBJ + TO BE + NOT + ING

I am not working now.

Question: TO BE + SUBJ + ING

Are you working now?

Short Answers

Yes, I am. / No, I’m not.

Some adverbs used with Present Continuous:

• now
• right now
• at the moment
• this week/month/etc

 

Some verbs are called stative verbs, they don’t describe actions. They describe states (feelings, thoughts, etc). They are not normally used in continuous tenses.

I like reading books. (correct)

I am liking reading books. (incorrect)

Some common stative verbs:

like – love – want – know – understand – remember – depend – prefer – hate – need – mean – believe – forget

You can practice Present Continuous with the following exercises:

Perfect English Grammar

Ego4U

Agenda Web