Present continuous or present progressive tense

Present continuous or present progressive tense (Subject + am/is/are +verb + -ing)

Look at the picture.

Mr. Anderson is in his car. He is on his way to work.

He is driving to work.

This means: he is driving now, at the time of speaking.

The action is not finished.

Subject + am/is/are + verb + -ing is the present continuous:

I | am (= I’m) driving

He/she/it | is (=he’s etc.) reading

We/you/they | are (=we’re etc.) doing

I am doing something means I’m in the middle of doing it; I’ve started doing it and I haven’t finished yet:

Please don’t make so much noise. I’m trying to study for my exam. (not I try)

A: ‘Where’s Jean?’

B: ‘She’s having a shower.’ (not She has a shower)

Let’s go out. It isn’t snowing any more. (not it doesn’t snow)

(at a party)

A: Hello, Jack. Are you enjoying the party? (not Do you enjoy)

B: Yes, I am.

What’s all that noise outside? What’s going on? (= What’s happening)

The action is not necessarily happening at the time of speaking. For example:

Annie is talking to a friend on a phone. She says: I’m reading a really good book at the moment. It’s about a man who rescued a princess from drowning.

Note: Annie is not reading the book at the time of speaking. She is talking on the phone. She means that she has started it, but has not finished it yet. She is in the middle of reading it.

Some more examples:

Kevin wants to work in France, so he’s learning French. (but perhaps she isn’t learning French at the time of speaking)

Some of my classmates are creating their own website. They hope to finish it next month.

You can use the present continuous with today/this week/this year etc. (periods around now):

A: You’re studying hard today. (not You work hard today)

B: Yes, I have a lot of homework to do.

The restaurant I work for isn’t doing so well this month.

We use the present continuous when we talk about changes happening around now, especially with these verbs:

get change become increase rise

fall grow improve begin start

Is your French getting better? (not Does your English get better)

The weather here is changing every time.

This city is becoming a smart city.

The population of the world is increasing very fast. (not increases)

The temperature is rising.

The gasoline prices are falling.

The plants are growing fast.

My English is improving.

At first I didn’t like my job, but I’m beginning to enjoy it now. (not I begin)

I am starting to understand the lesson.

Comments

Vocabulary about transport adjectives

Vocabulary about transport adjectives safe – dangerous empty – crowded / full comfortable – uncomfortable cheap – expensive clean – dirty fast - slow Positive: fast, safe, empty, comfortable, cheap, clean Negative: slow, dangerous, crowded, uncomfortable, expensive, dirty Writing practice - Write about the metro or transport system in your place. For example, The Rome Metro is unusual because it’s in a capital city, but it only has two underground lines. There are very old buildings above and below the ground everywhere in Rome so it’s very diﬀicult to build metro lines in the centre. Conversation practice - Find and underline the transport adjectives used in the conversation. ALICE Hi, Steve. Sorry I’m late. It was the traffic. So how did you get here? STEVE On the metro, of course. A Really? Do you use the metro? S Yes, I love going on the metro, it’s so quick. It only took half an hour. Don’t you use the metro? A No,

Vocabulary about transport

Vocabulary about transport Find four kinds of transport in the wordsnake below. jbusotaxiurboatnecarys 1. ___ 2. ____ 3. ____ 4. ___ The other letters spell ________. Vocabulary support Aeroplane vs plane Aeroplane is the more formal word, but plane is more common in everyday English. Coach vs bus A coach is similar to a bus, but more comfortable and used for longer journeys. wheel − a circular object connected to a car/bus/train, etc. so that it can move Speaking 1. What do people often use to go on holiday? 2. What do people normally use to get to work or school? 3. What are unusual for people to use in your country? 4. What do you normally use? Conversation KARA: My mum said you went on a long trip from North to South of Thailand. HANS Yes, it was a wonderful trip – really fantastic. K: How did you travel? H: By train of course. K: I went on a long trip last year and I travelled by

Vocabulary about countries and nationalities

VOCABULARY about countries and nationalities Underline the countries and circle the nationalities in the following sentences. 1. She’s from Russia. She’s Russian. 2. They’re from Brazil. They’re Brazilian. 3. They’re from Spain. They’re Spanish. 4. They’re from Germany. They’re German. 5. They’re from Japan. They’re Japanese. Pronunciation practice Russia, Brazilian, Spanish, Japan, Russian, Germany, Japanese, German, Brazil, Spain • Check students if they are aware that the stress shifts from the second syllable in Ja | pan to the third syllable in Jap | an | ese. • Highlight the changing vowel sound in Spain /speɪn/ and Spanish /ˈspænɪʃ/. GRAMMAR be: positive and negative LEN So where are you from? From New York? TOM No, I’m not from New York. I’m from a town called Harlem. L Hmm … Where’s that? T Oh, it’s a town near New York. It isn’t very big. L Oh, right. T So are you here with friends? L Yes, we’re a big group. We’r

Grammar

Search This Blog