FluencyLab
GrammarHub
Use the present continuous for actions happening now, temporary situations, and activities happening around the present time.
Overview
Use the present continuous for actions happening now, temporary situations, and activities happening around the present time.
Form and rules
Form it with am/is/are + verb-ing: I am working, she is studying, they are waiting.
For most verbs, add -ing. Drop final -e in many verbs: make → making. Double the final consonant in some short verbs: sit → sitting.
Make negatives by putting not after am/is/are: He isn't sleeping.
Make questions by putting am/is/are before the subject: Are you listening?
Common time expressions include now, right now, at the moment, today, and this week.
A closer look
Use the present continuous for actions happening at the moment of speaking and for temporary situations happening around now.
Spelling may change before -ing: make → making, run → running, lie → lying. The auxiliary be still agrees with the subject.
Examples
I'm talking to my teacher now.
She's working from home this week.
They aren't watching TV.
Are you waiting for someone?
The children are sitting on the floor.
Common mistakes
The present continuous always needs a form of be.
Use be + verb-ing, not be + base verb.
Ready to practise?
The test combines multiple choice, gap completion, error correction, and sentence building so students have to recognise and produce the grammar, not simply reread the rule.