PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS TENSES

Basic formSubject + HAS/HAVE + BEEN + Verb (continuous form)

Quick examples

• I have been working as a teacher for 30 years.
• What have you been doing?

The Present Perfect Continuous (Progressive) has a long and scary name. But don't worry! Read on to learn how to use it.

USES

1. Actions that started in the past and continue in the present
2. Actions that have recently stopped
3. Temporary actions and situations

Use 1: Continuation in the Present

We use the Present Perfect Continuous to show that something started in the past and continues in the present.

• He has been painting the house for 5 hours. He's still painting it
• I have been working as a fireman since 1973. I still work as a fireman

Use 2: Past actions recently stopped

Use this tense also to talk about actions that began in the past and have recently stopped.

• I have been waiting for you for half an hour! I'm not waiting anymore because you have come
• Look at her eyes! I'm sure she has been crying. She stopped crying when she saw them

For and SinceSince and for are very common time expressions used with the Present Perfect Continuous.We use for with a period of time, for example:

• I have been living here for 20 years.

When talking about a starting point, we use since, for example:

• I have been living here since 1960.

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Explanation

In this cartoon, you can see a mother asking her son: "What have you been doing?". The boy replies: "Nothing, mum".

• Why is this in Present Perfect Continuous? Click on the button labled "event 1". You can see that the boy is playing a computer game. Now click on the button labeled "event 2". In this scene, someone knocks at the door. It's his mother. In the next scene, she asks him "what have you been doing?". The use of Present Perfect Continuous is correct here because in this last scene Marcus no longer is playing a computer game (he stopped the moment he heard someone knocking at the door). This is exactly use 2 described above.

Use 3: Temporary Actions and Situations

We use this tense when an action or situation is temporary.

• I have been living in Boston for two months.
• I have been working as a waitress for the past week.