1. Education

Discuss in my forum

Present Perfect Continuous - Tense

By , About.com Guide

Definition:

The present perfect continuous is the name of a tense in English. Tenses are used to conjugate verbs to express the time (past, present, future) in which something happens. Here is an explanation of how the present perfect is used.

1) The present perfect continuous is used, like the present perfect simple, to express an action which begins in the past and continues into the present moment. For example, My parents have been travelling since early this morning.

2) BOTH the present perfect and present perfect can be used when expressing the duration of an activity that begins in the past and continues into the present. We tend to use the present perfect continuous to describe the duration of a current activity happening at the moment. For example, I've been reading this book since 10 this morning.

On the other hand, the present perfect is used to describe states or more general activity. For example, Jack has lived in California most of his life.

For more detailed information use this guide to the present perfect continuous. Teachers can find help with this guide on how to teach the present perfect continuous.

©2013 About.com. All rights reserved.