Present Perfect Continuous Tense (present perfect progressive tense) is used to express the action or task that started in the past and continues in present.
Signal Words
- for two hours,
- for ________
- how long
- since morning,
- since ______
Structure / Formula
Subject + has/have + been + Base form(+ing)
| I | have | been | travelling. |
| Subject | Auxiliary verb (present tense) | Auxiliary verb (past participle) | Base form of verb+ing |
Positive Sentences
To make the positive sentences, we use this structure,
Subject + has/have + been + V1(+ing) + …
Examples of positive sentences
- He has been playing football for two hours.
- The child has been studying since morning.
- She has been kneading the floor.
- I have been playing my favorite game.
- They have been working in this office since last year.
Negative Sentences
To make the sentence negative, we add ‘not’ after auxiliary verb (present tense).
Subject + has/have + not + been + V1(+ing) + …
Examples of negative sentences.
- Julia has not been making a sponge cake.
- He has not been reading his favorite book.
- She has not been planting for three hours.
- They have not been studying since morning.
- I have not been traveling.
Question Sentences
Auxiliary verb (present tense) come at the start of the sentence and question mark at the end.
Has/have + subject + been + V1(+ing) + … +?
Examples of question sentences.
- Has he been studying since morning?
- Has she been planting for two hours?
- Have they been traveling for two days?
- Has the farmer been ploughing the fields?
- Has he been smoking since 2011?
Usage
| Usage | Example |
| Emphasis on duration of action. | I have been learning French since I went to school. |
| To express anger and irritation | Why have you been disturbing me? |
| Time bound expressions (since, for, lately, how long) | 1. He has been watching TV for two hours. 2. He has been smoking since 2015. |
Exercises
- He (write) an interesting essay.
- I (take) the dose of medicine for two days.
- The farmer (plant) since morning.
- I (learn) English.
- Rita (drive) the black car for five years.
- The children (watch) the TV all day long.
- John (smoke) for five years.
- The mechanic (fix) my bike since morning.
- I (plan) my holidays for one week.
- He (obey) the orders of his boss.
View: Present Perfect Continuous Tense Practice Test (Exercise)
Answers
- He has been writing an interesting essay.
- I have been taking the dose of medicine for two days.
- The farmer has been planting since morning.
- I have been learning English.
- Rita has been driving the black car for five years.
- The children have been watching the TV all day long.
- John has been smoking for five years.
- The mechanic has been fixing my bike since morning.
- I have been planning my holidays for one week.
- He has been obeying the orders of his boss.
