- The affirmative present continuous tense
- The negative present continuous tense
- The interrogative present continuous tense
- When to use the present continuous tense
The affirmative present continuous tense:
The present continuous tense is conjugated according to the pronoun as follows:
1. I + am +the infinitive+ (-ing)
For example: I am going to the cinema.
2. He, she, it + is +the infinitive+ (-ing)
For example: he is going to the cinema.
3. We, you, they + are +the infinitive+ (-ing)
For example: they are going to the cinema.
The negative present continuous tense:
As in the previous section, the negative is also divided into three cases according to the pronoun as follows:
1. I + am + not + the infinitive+ (-ing)
For example: I am not going to the cinema.
2. He, she, it + is + not +the infinitive+ (-ing)
For example: he is not going to the cinema.
3. we, you, they + are + not +the infinitive+ (-ing)
For example: they are not going to the cinema.
The interrogative present continuous tense:
How to make questions using the present continuous tense:
Am/is/are + the subject (noun/ pronoun) + the infinitive+ (-ing)…?
For example:
1. I am watching TV now.
The question: Am I watching TV now?
The answer: Yes, I am. Or: No, I am not.
2. The football players are playing at the moment?
The question: Are they playing at the moment?
The answer: Yes, they are. Or: No, they are not.
3. My mother is cleaning the house now.
The question: Is your mother cleaning the house now?
The answer: Yes, she is. Or: No, she is not.
Note: questions made with question words (how, when, where, why, etc,) are constructed as follows:
Question word + am/ is/ are + the subject (noun/ pronoun) + the infinitive+ (-ing)…?
For example:
My mother is cleaning the house tomorrow.
The question: When is your mother cleaning the house?
The answer: She is cleaning the house tomorrow.
When to use the present continuous tense?
How do you know it is a present continuous tense?
1. To express actions that are happening now (while speaking) and in this pattern, there are words that indicate easily to the tense such as:
Now, at the moment, in the present time, Look, listen, Be quiet, watch out, look out.
For example:
listen! Dad is calling for you.
You cannot meet my father now. He is sleeping.
2. To express actions in the present time.
For example:
My brother is studying law at university.
3. To express future actions that are planned and arranged.
For example:
We are having a party next week. Everything has been planned.
Note:
There are verbs that are not used with the present continuous tense. They are the feelings, senses, realizing and possessing verbs such as:
Like, dislike, love, hate, see, know, hear, understand, taste, prefer, suppose, imagine, own, possess, be, hope, want, etc.
However, if they are used with the present continuous tense, they express another meaning than their original meaning.
For example: Rose is seeing her grandpa today. In this sentence, (seeing) means visiting.