The present continuous (progressive)tense

BE (AM, IS, ARE) + V _ING

A

a +			I	am		standing	at the	table	now.
b -			I	am	not	standing	at the	table	now.	I am = I'm
c ?		Am	I			standing	at the	table	now?	Yes, I am. No, I am not.
	Where	am	I			Standing?				At the table.

B

a +			He She It	is is is		studying sitting sleeping	grammar at the	desk	now. now. now.	He is=he's She is=she's It is=it's
b -			He She It	is is is	not not not	studying sitting sleeping	grammar at the	desk	now. now. now.	Is not=isn't
c ?		Is Is Is	he she it			studying? sitting? sleeping?				Yes, he is. No, she isn't.
	What Where	is is	he she Who	is		studying? sitting? studying	grammar?			Grammar. At the desk. He is.

Exercise 1. Make the following sentences a) negative and b) interrogative.

Model: They are talking about their trip abroad.

a) They are not talking about their trip abroad.

b) Are they talking about their trip abroad?

1. I am expecting a call from John. 2. The secretary is looking through the files. 3. The committee are considering a very serious matter now. 4. Right now George is talking on the telephone. 5. They are living in a rented house at the moment. 6. Mike is trying to fix the TV set. 7. John is writing a grammar test at the moment. 8. We are having an English lesson.

Exercise 2. Use the Present Continuous instead of the Infinitive in brackets.

1. He (not to work), he (watch) the TV programme. 2. Look! The sun (rise). 3. It (rain)?  Yes, it (rain) very hard. 4. Why Ann (not to wear) her new dress? 5 It (get) dark. The wind (blow), the sun (not to shine). 6.Somebody (talk) in the next room. 7. The children are very quiet. Go and see what they (do). 8. Somebody (knock) at the door.

Exercise 3. Add question tags to the following sentences.

1. The Baxters are travelling about France. 2. The weather isn’t getting colder. 3. Peter is having breakfast now. 4. The boys are playing football in the yard. 5. The children are eating cheese. 6. George is not working at the moment. 7. The sun is shining today. 8. I’m trying to open the drawer.

Exercise 4. Make alternative questions from the following sentences.

Model: The students are working in the library. (in the lab)

Are the students working in the library or in the lab?

1. Mike is reading a newspaper. (a magazine) 2. The children are playing volley-ball. (tennis) 3. Mrs. Jones is cooking lunch. (dinner) 4. George is going to Columbia University.(Cornel University) 5.You are studying English.(Norwegian) 6. John is trying to find a telephone number in his note-book.(in a telephone directory) 7. Arthur is studying for a master’s degree.(a bachelor’s degree). 8. The students are writing a test.(a dictation) 9. Mr. and Mrs. Smith are having dinner at a restaurant.(lunch) sleeping.(watch TV).

Exercise 5. Ask questions to the following statements. Begin with the given interrogative word.

1. Jonh is waiting for someone. (who) 2. They are talking about their trip to London. (what) 3. He is speaking to the Headmaster. (who) 4. Jane is typing a very important document. (what) 5. This semester I’m taking maths classes. (when) 6. Mary is looking for her bag. (what) 7. We are celebrating our granny’s birthday. (whose) 8. They are planning to go to Moscow during their winter holidays.(where) 9. Robert is having a shower in the bathroom. (what) 10. My cousin is washing his car in front of the garage.(where)

Exercise 6. Translate the following sentences into English.

1. Почему ребенок плачет? 2. Члены комиссии ждут вас в вашем кабинете. 3. С кем разговаривает ваш муж? 4. Студенты сидят за столами и пишут контрольную работу. 5. Он занят. Он что-то пишет. 6. Они обсуждают что-то интересное. 7. Она всегда опаздывает на работу. 8. Кто-то стучит в дверь. Откройте, пожалуйста. 9. Что делают студенты?  Они отвечают на вопросы преподавателя. 10. Они сейчас обсуждают очень серьезный вопрос. 11. О чем ты говоришь? 12. Я слушаю вас очень внимательно.

Exercise 7. Choose the right alternative.

1. She says she didn’t take the money, but I don’t believe/I’m not believing her. 2. I’m sorry, but I don’t remember/I am not remembering his new telephone number. 3. Do you like/Are you liking this painting? 4. He has/is having lunch now, so he may be late for the meeting. 5. Cats see/are seeing in very dim light. 6. We are leaving tomorrow. Bill sees/is seeing us off at the airport. 7. Who is that man? What does he want/is he wanting? 8. She told me her name, but I don’t remember/is not remembering it now. 9. He wants/is wanting to tell you something. 10. I used to drink a lot of coffee, but these days I prefer/am preferring tea. 11. This suitcase weighs/is weighing too much, I can’t carry it.

Exercise 8. Put the verbs into the correct form: Present Simple or Present Continuous.

1. I (not to like) garlic when I (smell) it but I (love) it when I (taste) it. 2. What time she (come) here as a rule? 3. Our car is very unreliable. It always (break down). 4. How is your English?  Not bad. It (improve) slowly. 5. What your father (do)?  He’s an economist, but he (not to work) at the moment. 6. This train is never late. It always (leave) on time. 7. You (understand) what the lecturer (say)?  No, I (not to understand) him at all, though I (listen) with great attention. 8. You (hear) what he (say)?  No, I (not to listen). 9. You (go) my way? I (want) to speak to you. 10. Ray! The phone (ring).  I can’t get it. I (wash) my hair. 11. Hurry up! The bus (come). I (not to want) to miss it. 12. He often (walk) to the University? No, he usually (go) by bus. 13. It’s 6 p.m. Mary is at home. She (eat) dinner. She always (eat) dinner with her family around six o’clock. 14. Mike, Mr. Grey (leave), say “Good-bye” to him. 15. What’s the matter?  It (rain) and I (not to have) an umbrella. 16. Peter (stand) in front of the time-table. He (look) at it very hard. He (not to know) the number of the classroom.

Exercise 9. Put the verbs into the correct form: Present Simple or Present Continuous.

1. My elder sister (have) a music lesson. She always (have) a music lesson on Friday. 2. My sister really (make) me angry. She always (borrow) my things without asking me. 3. In spring the days (grow) longer and the nights (become) warmer. 4. Why you (smile), Kitty? 5. You (hear) anything?  Yes, somebody (knock) at the door. 6. They still (discuss) where to go. 7. I always (buy) lottery tickets but I seldom (win). 8. Ron is in London at the moment. He (stay) at the Park Hotel. He always (stay) there when he is in London. 9. Can you drive?  I (learn). My father (teach) me. 10. We (enjoy) our holiday. We (have) a great fun. 11. She (taste) the pudding to see, if it is sweet enough. 12. He usually (leave) his office at seven o’clock, but this week he (work) later. 13. Some people (do) everything with their left hand. 14. How you (feel)? 15. You (understand) the rule? 16. I (not to know) what he (want).

Exercise 10. Put the verbs into the correct form: Present Simple or Present Continuous.

1. Mr. West (speak) over the telephone now. 2. Water (boil) at 100 degrees Celsius. 3. Julia is very good at languages. She (speak) four languages very well. 4. Please, don’t make so much noise. Father (work) in the study. 5. Simon (be) very untidy. He always (leave) his clothes lying on the bathroom floor. 6. Hurry up! Everybody (wait) for you. 7. Ali (speak) Arabic. Arabic is his native language, but right now he (speak) English. 8. We usually (grow) vegetables in our garden, but this year we (not to grow) any. 9. She (not to understand) what you (say). 10. This spaghetti (taste) delicious. 11. Can you ring me back in half an hour? I (have) dinner. 12. Where you (go)?  To the library.  You often (go) to the library?  Twice a week. 13. I (not to want) to go for a walk now.

Exercise 11. Put the verbs into the correct form: Present Simple or Present Continuous.

1. Why Brian (wear) a suit today?  It’s Tuesday. He always (go) to lunch with his boss on Tuesdays. 2. She (take) three classes this semester, but she usually (take) more. 3. Where’s Tim?  I (think) he (take) a nap. 4. You (like) your job?  No, I (hate) it. 5. I (feel) very well today. 6. My brother (say) that people who (owe) him money always (seem) to forget about it, but people he (owe) money to always (remember) exactly. 7. You (hear) how the rain (beat) on the window? 8. I (think) it’s a pity you (not to take) more exercise. You (get) fat. 9. He (revise) for the exams this week. 10. What’s the noise? What (happen)? 11. I (not to like) my job very much because I (do) the same things every day. I (want) to find a new job.

Exercise 12. Translate the following sentences into English

1. Генри редко пишет письма родителям, но он часто звонит им по телефону. 2. В чем дело? Почему ты плачешь? 3. Где профессор Пайк?  Он у себя в кабинете. Он готовится к завтрашней лекции. Профессор Пайк всегда работает в это время. 4. Почему этот мужчина так смотрит на вас? Вы его знаете? 5. Когда вы обычно заканчиваете работу? 6.Я не люблю хоккей. Я предпочитаю фигурное катание. 7. а) Они часто обсуждают такие проблемы. б) Они обсуждают что-то интересное. 10. Что ты делаешь сейчас?  Ничего. 11. а) Он обычно так быстро говорит, что я его не понимаю. б) Вы понимаете, что говорит преподаватель?  Конечно. 12. Секретарь сейчас занята. Она печатает важный документ. 13. Почему ты не танцуешь? Ты ждешь Мэри? 14. Ты не слушаешь меня! 18. а) Погода в Англии меняется очень часто. б) Возьми плащ. Погода меняется. 19. Она постоянно теряет ключи студенты из второй группы?

THE PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS TENSE

HAVE (HAS) BEEN + V + ING

Exercise 1. Put the verbs in brackets into the Present Perfect Continuous.

1. He (work) here for many years. 2. I (live) in New York two years. 3. He (drink) coffee every day for many years. 4. I (wait) here for ten minutes. 5. What you (look for) all this time? 6. I (try) to reach you by telephone for an hour. 7. They (talk) for more than twenty minutes. 8. I (try) to get a god job for many months now. 1O. Are you writing a letter? How long you (write) and when will you have finished it? 11. Since when you (speak) French? 12. Carlos (study) at the University for six months.

Exercise 2. Combine the sentences into one by using the Present Perfect Continuous.

Model: It started raining last Sunday. It’s still raining.