Present Continuous Tense

What is the present continuous tense?

The present continuous tense is formed by using the present participle (-ing form) of a verb after the present-tense form of the auxiliary verb “be” (is, am, or are). This tense is used to express actions that are currently happening or planned for the future, whereas the present simple tense is used for actions that are always the case or fixed in the future.

Actions happening at the moment of speech

The present continuous can also indicate a continuing action that is not happening at the exact moment of speaking. This can refer to an activity that the subject is currently involved in over a longer period of time, but not necessarily permanently. For example:

• “I am going home now.”
• “He is crying because of the movie.”
• “We are heading to the park.”
• “It is raining outside.”

Actions happening currently, but not at the moment of speech

The present continuous can also be used to express an ongoing action that is not happening exactly at the moment of speaking. This action is typically something that the subject is currently involved in and continues to happen over a period of time, but not necessarily on a permanent basis. For example:

• “John is working in telemarketing.”
• “She is running for president.”
• “I am living in London.”

Actions or events planned for the future

Like the present simple tense, the present continuous can also describe future events. However, it is used to express plans or intentions rather than fixed future events. The formation of the verb does not change, but the context and other elements in the sentence convey the future aspect.

• “She is running for president next year.”
• “I am taking my driving test after the Christmas break.”
• “We are watching a movie later.”

With adverbs

Additionally, adverbs of time can be placed between the auxiliary verb “be” and the present participle to specify or clarify the timing or frequency of an action.

• “I am already leaving.” (I am leaving sooner than I expected.)
• “She is still living next door.” (She continues to live next door, perhaps longer than was expected.)

The adverb always

There is a special usage when the adverb “always” is used between “be” and the present participle, it doesn’t indicate that the action is happening always but it is used to express that the action happens frequently and sometimes too frequently. It is often used to add a sense of exaggeration to the frequency of the action and it usually implies that the action is undesirable or irritating. For example:

• “My husband is always leaving dirty dishes in the sink!”
• “The used car I bought is always breaking down.”
• “You are always losing your phone!”

Negative sentences

A negative sentence in the present continuous form describes an action that is not currently taking place. We form these by adding the word “not” after the auxiliary verb “be”. For second, third person, and first-person plural (but not first-person singular), “be” and “not” can also be combined to form contractions.

For example:

• “I am not watching the movie.”
• “He is not crying.”
• “You aren’t leaving until the house is clean.”
• “She isn’t going home for Thanksgiving this year.”

• “I amn’t reading that anymore.” (incorrect)

Not can also be replaced with the adverbial phrase no longer to indicate that someone or something was doing something, but that is not the case now. For instance:

• “She is no longer living in New York.”

Interrogative sentences

Interrogative (question) sentences in the present continuous tense are formed by switching the position of the verb “be” and the subject. If adverbs are used to clarify or specify the time, they are placed before the main verb or at the end of the sentence.

• “Is she sleeping?”
• “Are you seeing this?”
• “Are they going home already?”
• “Is it still raining outside?”

The present continuous can also be used with the question words who, what, where when, why, and how:

• “When is she taking the exam?”
• “What are you watching?”
• “Why is he leaving?”
• “Who’s talking?”
• “How are they getting to the station?”

Negative interrogative sentences

Negative-interrogative sentences are also questions, but they imply that the speaker expects something to be the case. They can be used to express surprise when something is no longer happening.
We create these sentences by reversing the position of “be” and the subject, and then adding the word “not” after the subject. “be” and “not” can also be contracted, and if they are, the contraction comes before the subject, making the sentence sound less formal. Adverbs can also be used to specify or clarify time. For example:

• “Is she not painting anymore?”
• “You want to play outside? Isn’t it raining?”
• “Wait, aren’t they still dating?”

Like the negative sentence, no longer can be used instead of not in negative interrogative sentences. Just note that you do not use other adverbs in this case:

• “Are Tim and John no longer living together?”
• “Is it no longer raining outside?”

Negative-interrogative sentences in the present continuous can also be used in combination with question words, typically “why” and “how“. These types of sentences usually express the speaker’s surprise or disappointment that something is not happening.:

• “Why is she not leaving today?”
• “How are you not watching the match on TV?”
• “Why aren’t we abandoning this foolish enterprise?”
• “It’s the middle of December. How is it not snowing yet?”
• “I just upgraded this computer, so why isn’t it working?”
• “I’ve been practicing for hours. How am I not getting better at this?”

It’s worth mentioning that we can use the question words “who”, “when”, and “where” in negative-interrogative sentences, but unlike “why” and “how”, these are mostly used for emphasizing the point in response to another question.:

• Speaker A: “Where are you going in Europe this summer?”
• Speaker B: “Where aren’t we going?” (Implies that the speaker is going many places.)

• Speaker A: “Who all is coming to the party tonight?”
• Speaker B: “Oh man, who isn’t coming?” (Implies that many people are coming to the party.)

• Speaker A: “We’re having a party tonight. Do you want to come, or do you have to study?”
• Speaker B: “You know me. When am I not studying?” (Implies that the speaker studies very often.)

However, this doesn’t mean that we can’t form literal negative questions with who, when, or where—it’s just less common. Here are a few examples showing when such sentences might be used:

• “OK, I need one more person to cover the night shift tomorrow. Who isn’t working in the morning?”
• “I’m sorry, I couldn’t hear your announcement. Where in the city did you say the tour group is not visiting?”
• “What’s the best time to visit Seattle? When is it not raining there?”

(For more information about different types of sentences, go to the chapter on Sentences in the part of the guide on Syntax.)