The Present Perfect Progressive tense

The present progressive tense tells us about an action that started in the past and continues to the present.  It refers to an unspecified time between 'before now' and 'now'. The present perfect progressive or the present perfect continuous is the form of the verb that refers to the action that started in the past and continued up until now.

We think the action started in the past and maybe it did not finish at that period of time. So, we are more concerned about the process and the consequence as well. This progress may have finished or it is still going on. When we say perfect we do not mean absolute perfectness but we mean it is finished and done. You can see this example here:

I have been waiting for her all day.

This means I have been waiting for her to come and I am still waiting. It Could be a serious matter or I need to see her for an important cause.

The present perfect progressive shows that something is happening lately or recently. For instance:

The Spanish team has been playing very well.

It means that lately, the team is doing well. I am referring to Barcelona. I like Messy and Nemar. One of the functions of the present perfect progressive tense is the finishing of the action, but we are interested in the result. Such as:

Sarah has been cooking kuskus.

It means she has been doing the cooking since a certain time in the past before now and the kuskus is in front of us on the table which is very hot and delicious. Some verbs have no continuous forms like (want, hear, love, know… etc. ) we can use the simple perfect present tense instead. Examples:

I have wanted to see her.

She has heard everything.

I have hated him since the first day I saw him.

 

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Comments

  • Sain bain oo Molly, I am glad you have gained something from it. Thanks, for your time!

  • Useful post with great explanation. thank u Mr Dara. 

  • Ni hao Fairy Ran, I am very happy to be one of your friends. Thanks for your nice words about the blog. Can you visit my page again and see The Wedding?

  • Thank you for sharing this with us, it's really helpful, I have been seeking this kind of knowledge.

  • Koi baat nahi, Hina. Main ap kei Kiya khidmat kar sakta hoon? I am happy to be one of your friends. Can you visit my page again and see The Wedding? Thanks!
  • Sumasang ayon ako sa iyo rin, guapo Robbie. You are right mod. Robbie, English learners should be careful about using informal usages. I really appreciate your time,
  • Hi, Sir Dara!

    What have you been talking about? That Kuskus has been making me hungry! :) I agree with your lesson, but sometimes people still use the verbs of feeling in continuous form such as 'I've been wanting to call you.' or the famous one 'I'm loving it!' from a popular fast food chain. English learners should be aware that these examples are informal and ought not to use them in academic setting.

    Thank you for sharing! 

    Robbie :)

  • Sungay Aiman, I really appreciate your time commenting and liking my blog about the present perfect progressive tense. I repeat, thanks, a lot!

  • Ninkal kuta Shoba. You too, my dear respected lady. Thanks for your nice comments!

  • Nice blog and interesting blog i loved and truly beautifully words captured in perfect timing :) keep it up

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