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Verb Tenses - Lesson 102

Present Continuous Tense

Lesson 102 - learn the English present continuous tense: how to form it, when to use it, common mistakes, examples and a short video.

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How to form the present continuous tense

How To Form The Present Continuous:

To form the present continuous for affirmative statements, use a subject and add the auxiliary verb to be in the present simple (I am, you are, he is...) then take the compliment of your verb and add ...ing (playing). This gives I am playing. You are playing. He is playing, and so on. To make negatives place not after the auxiliary verb to be. I am not playing. To make questions swap the positions of subject and the auxiliary verb. Am I playing? The following table shows how it is done:

Affirmative Negative Interrogative
I am playing I am not playing Am I playing?
You are playing You are not playing Are you playing?
He is playing He is not playing Is he playing?
She is playing She is not playing Is she playing?
It is playing It is not playing Is it playing?
We are playing We are not playing Are we playing?
You are playing You are not playing Are you playing?
They are playing They are not playing Are they playing?

The following video explains how to form the present continuous:

When to use it

  • Actions happening right now, at the moment of speaking. She's reading a book.
  • Temporary situations around now. I'm staying with friends this week.
  • Fixed future arrangements, especially with a time and place. We're meeting Tom at seven.
  • Changing or developing situations. The climate is getting warmer.

Signal words & time expressions: now, right now, at the moment, currently, today, this week, these days, still, Look!, Listen!

Watch the video lesson

Video transcript

How to form the present continuous. Take a subject I, then use the auxiliary verb to be in the present simple. I am. Then you take your verb, the compliment, the infinitive without to, for this example play, and add ...ing to make the gerund, or the present participle. This gives you, I am playing. Or as a contraction I'm playing. For second person, you are playing, you're playing, he is playing, he's playing, she is playing, it is playing, we are playing, you are playing, they are playing or they're playing. Ok, that's how you make affirmative statements, to make negative ones add not after the verb to be. So therefore, I am not playing. OK. Notice this not you cannot contract, you can only say, I'm not playing. Or as a contraction I'm not playing, OK? You are not playing, he is not playing, she is not playing, we are not playing, you are not playing, they are not playing or they aren't playing, as a contraction. To make questions change the position of the subject and the auxiliary verb to be. So, am I playing? Are you playing? Is he playing? Is she playing? Are we playing? I forgot, is it playing? Are we playing? Are you playing? Are they playing? So that's how to make the present continuous. Subject, auxiliary verb to be, the verb (or the compliment of the verb) with ...ing. So see you in the next video, when to use the present continuous.

Common mistakes to avoid

Not quite…Better
I'm wanting a coffee.I want a coffee. — stative verbs are not usually used in the continuous.
She is work now.She is working now. — the continuous is be + verb-ing.

Frequently asked questions

Which verbs can't take ‘-ing’?

State verbs about thoughts (know, believe), feelings (like, love, hate), senses (see, hear) and possession (have, own) are normally used in the present simple, not the continuous.

Can the present continuous talk about the future?

Yes — for planned arrangements you have already fixed: I'm flying to Rome on Friday.

Continue the course

This lesson is part of our free English Verb Tenses course — work through it in order or jump to what you need next.

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