
CONTINUOUS TENSES
The Present Continuous
Uses
1.Actions that occur at the moment of speech. The action starts before the moment of speech, continues at the moment of speech and will probably keep on going after the moment of speaking.
It is raining at the moment.
Sarah is working out right now.
2.It expresses a present action, which may or may not be occurring at the moment of speaking.
I´m reading a book which has over one thousand pages.
3.It describes situations that are constantly repeated. In these cases, the adverb always is often used and is positioned between the verb to be and the main verb.
People are always complaining about something
4. Planned actions that will take place in the near future:
The kids are traveling to Canada next weekend.
Structure
SUBJECT + TO BE (PRESENT) + VERB + ING
Affirmative
MY FRIENDS ARE HAVING A CLASS NOW.
THE WEATHER IS CONSTANTLY CHANGING.
Negative
MY FRIENDS AREN’T HAVING A CLASS NOW.
THE WEATHER ISN’T CONSTANTLY CHANGING.
Interrogative
ARE YOUR FRIENDS HAVING A CLASS NOW?
IS THE WEATHER CONSTANTLY CHANGING?
The Past Continuous
Uses
1.It describes an action in progress at a specific time in the past:
Ruben was watching tv at 8pm last night.
2. Narrating the circumstances of a past situation:
Yesterday was a perfect day because the sun was shining, and the kids were playing in the yard.
3.It describes actions in progress simultaneously.
My dad was cooking dinner while my siblings were doing their homework when I arrived home.
4. It indicates a habitual action that occurred in the past. Frequency adverbs are usually used: constantly, often, always between the simple past of the verb to be and the main verb:
Raul was constantly getting into fights during his high school years.
Structure
SUBJECT + TO BE (past) + VERB + ING
Affirmative
I was speaking on the phone when you called me yesterday
Two men were fighting outside around midnight last night.
Negative
I wasn’t speaking on the phone…
Two men weren’t fighting outside…
Interrogative
Were you speaking on the phone...?
Were two men fighting outside…?
The Future Continuous
Future Progressive basically expresses actions that will be taking place at some point in the future.
A construction company will be building a tower near my house for the next two years.
Structure - WILL X TO BE GOING TO
SUBJECT + WILL + TO BE + VERB + ING
SUBJECT + TO BE GOING TO BE + VERB + ING
Affirmative
Sarah will probably be arriving from NYC in about two hours.
Peter is going to be waiting for Sarah..
Negative
Sarah won’t be arriving…
Peter isn’t going to be waiting…
Interrogative
Will Sarah be arriving …?
Is Peter going to be waiting…?
ADDING THE SUFFIX ING
SPELLING RULES
Most verbs
We simply add the suffix ‘ing’ to the verbs
Working – calling – talking – founding– reporting – recording – playing – staying - enjoying
Verbs ending in letter “E”
We remove the “ e “ and add ing
Hoping – facing – loving – changing – believing
Exceptions – being – seeing – glueing – agreeing
Lie = Lying – tie = tying - die = dying
One-syllable verbs and verbs whose last syllable is stressed ending in consonant + vowel + consonant
We need to DOUBLE the last consonant then add “ING”
Stopping – dropping – robbing – planning – shopping ( 1 syllable)
Permitting – omitting – preferring – occuring– admitting
except verbs enging in X, W and Y
Fixing – waxing–snowing - showing – playing - obeying
•If the verb ends in “L”, we need to doulble the “L” in British English.
Travelling (Br.) – traveling (Am.) – cancelling (Br.) – canceling (Am.)
Verbs ending in C+V+C whose last syllable ISN’T stressed, we simply add “ing” to the verb.
Listening – visiting – developing – suffering – offering - wondering
Non-continuous Verbs
Non-continuous verbs are verbs that we do not normally use with continuous tenses. These "stative" verbs are about state, not action, and they cannot express the continuous or progressive aspect. Here are some of the most common non-continuous verbs:
•feelings: hate, like, love, prefer, want, wish
•senses: appear, feel, hear, see, seem, smell, sound, taste
•communication: agree, deny, disagree, mean, promise, satisfy, surprise
•thinking: believe, imagine, know, mean, realize, recognize, remember, understand
•other states: be, belong, concern, depend, involve, matter, need, owe, own, possess, have