English Grammar – Present Perfect Continuous – 97 Ex

The present perfect continuous tense shows that something started in the past and is continuing at the present time.

When to use it?

• An action that recently stopped.
• An action that has not happened recently.
• The action may be recently finished or continuing.
• An action that recently stopped and has a present result.
• The action continued at the time of speaking or writing.
• This tense can be used to talk about an action that started in the past and continues in the present.
• We use it to talk about actions in progress from the past up to the present. Often with for or since.
• We sometimes use it to emphasize an action repeated many times, or the length of time of an action.

Present Perfect Continuous Keywords

• All + time. [all day, all week, all month, all year]
• The whole day, the whole week, the whole night, the whole year.
• For.
• Since.
• Lately.
• how long.
• During.

Present Perfect Continuous Positive Form

Subject + have or has + been + base Verb [Verb 1] with ing + complement.

Short forms

• I have = I’ve.
• He has = he’s.
• She has = she’s.
• It has = it’s.
• You have = you’ve.
• We have = we’ve.
• They have = they’ve.

Present Perfect Continuous Positive examples

• It has been raining all day.
• It has been growing since June.
• I have been reading for 2 hours.
• I have been waiting for you all day.
• I’m tired because I’ve been running.
• She’s been reading that book all day.
• I have been watching TV since 10pm.
• He has been travelling for two hours.
• I have been cleaning since yesterday.
• Recently, I have been feeling really tired.
• I have been writing ten letters since morning.
• Lately, Dina has been swimming a lot.
• I’m tired, because I have been running.
• Adam has been studying math for an hour.
• Lina has been playing the guitar for 3 years.
• You have been missing many classes lately.
• Recently, Sally has been running every day.
• He has been playing football for a long time.
• He has been living in Delhi since he left school.
• I have been working all morning. I am tired.
• We have been living in this city for ten years.
• The students have been preparing for the test.
• I have been gardening, so my hands are dirty.
• The street is wet because it has been raining.
• I have been studying all night, so I’m exhausted.
• My brother and I have been working since 7 Am.
• We have been practicing English together recently.
• They have been talking for the last hour.
• We have been waiting here for over two hours!
• We have been working on this project for five months.
• My father is very tired. He’s been working very hard.
• Ibrahim has been teaching at the university since May.
• Sorry about the mess. We have been painting the walls.
• My father has been trying to convince me the whole night.
• Mary has been working at that company for three years.
• My daughter has been watching too much television lately.
• Half of my chips are gone; someone has been eating them.
• The food on the table looks delicious, my mother has been cooking all day.
• They have been continuously asking for a railway station for a long time.

Present Perfect Continuous Negative Form

Contraction:

Have not been = haven’t been
Has not been = hasn’t been

Present Perfect Continuous Negative examples

• I haven’t been waiting long.
• It hasn’t been snowing all day.
• You haven’t been sleeping all day.
• Susan has not been cooking lately.
• It hasn’t been moaning all evening.
• We have not been traveling for year.
• Sami hasn’t been feeling well recently.
• I have been not feeling well these days.
• We haven’t been reading a novel lately.
• Lately, my friend has not been helping me.
• Sami has not been practicing his English.
• My son hasn’t been visiting us since April.
• She hasn’t been living here for three years.
• My wife has not been cooking much recently.
• My son has not been playing tennis for 5 hours.
• I have not been reading the book since morning.
• I have not been listening to music for a long time.
• My children have not been bothering us for 3 hours.
• My sister has not been eating healthy food recently.
• My parents have not been speaking for over a year.
• Our teacher has not been writing the story since 2pm.
• I’m learning Arabic, but I haven’t been learning it very long.
• You don’t understand because you have not been listening.
• I’m sorry to keep you waiting. I hope you haven’t waiting long.
• The Syrian people have not been eating the bread since 2011.

Present Perfect Continuous Question Form

Have or has + Subject + been + base Verb [Verb 1] with ing + complement + ?.

Short answer:

Yes, I have.
No, I have not.

Present Perfect Continuous Question examples

• Has it been snowing all day? Yes, it has.
• Have you been waiting long? No, I haven’t.
• Have you been playing tennis? Yes, I have.
• Have you been getting up early? Yes, I have.
• Has your wife been helping you? Yes, she has.
• Have you been going to the gym? No, I haven’t.
• Have you been reading for an hour? Yes, I have.
• Has your father working hard recently? No, he hasn’t.
• Have we been learning English tenses? Yes, we have.
• Has she been living with the dwarfs lately? No, she hasn’t.
• You’re out of breath. Have you been running? Yes, I have.
• Has she been planning to catch me since you left? Yes, she has.
• Have your parents been sleeping since 9 PM? No, they haven’t.
• Half of my chips are gone. Has someone been eating them? Yes, it has.

Present Perfect Continuous WH Question Form

WH + Have or has + Subject + been + base Verb [Verb 1] with ing + complement + ?.

Present Perfect Continuous WH Question examples

• How has he been doing? He has been doing well.
• How long have you been driving? Since I was 17.
• what have you been doing lately? I have been studying.
• Where have you been? I’ve been looking for you everywhere.
• How long has it been raining? It has been raining for an hour.
• What have you been doing lately? I’ve been revising for my exam.
• How long have you been teaching? I have been teaching for 18 years.
• Where has your brother been traveling? He has been traveling in Europe.
• How long have you been learning Arabic? I’ve been learning Arabic for 2 years.
• How long have you been writing books? I have been writing books since 2014.
• How long have you been learning English? I’ve been learning English for 3 years.
• How long have you been working there? I have been working there for 7 years.
• How long have your parents been married? They have been married for 24 years.
• Why has your son been feeling sad? He has been feeling sad, because his cat died.
• How long has your son been reading that book? He has been reading for two hours.
• How long have they been playing tennis? They’ve been playing tennis for an hour.
• How long have you been selling mobile phones? I have been selling phones since 2011.
• Where have you been? Have you been playing tennis? No, I haven’t. I have been reading.

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