Present continuous: what is going on now
With am, is or are and a verb ending in -ing you say what is happening now: I am eating, it's raining. Habits stay in the present simple.
Why
Your friend calls while you are on the ferry to Dover. She asks: What are you doing? How do you say what you are doing right now?
What is happening now, at this very moment, you say with the present continuous: I'm sitting on the deck. We're looking at the white cliffs. It's raining a bit.
English makes a clear difference between what you always do and what you are doing now. I play football is a habit. I'm playing football means you are in the middle of a game. Dutch often just says ‘ik voetbal’ for both.
See it
Pick a situation. On the timeline you see whether it is a habit (dots on many days) or something happening now (the moment now). The sentence changes with it.
Description of the picture
A timeline with the days of the week. For a habit there are dots on many days and the sentence is in the present simple, for example She plays tennis on Saturdays. For something happening now, only the moment now lights up and the sentence is in the present continuous, for example She is playing tennis now.
Get it
You build the present continuous from two parts: a form of to be (am, is, are) and the verb with -ing. I am reading. She is sleeping. They are waiting. You need both: I reading is wrong.
You use it for what is going on now (Look, it's snowing.) and for something that is true for a while these days (I'm reading a great book this week.). Signal words are now, right now, at the moment, today, this week, look and listen.
Spelling -ing: usually you just add it (read, reading). A silent e drops: make becomes making. One vowel + one consonant at the end of a short word: the consonant doubles (run, running; swim, swimming; sit, sitting). And ie becomes y: lie becomes lying, die becomes dying.
Some verbs are about what you think, feel or have, not about an action. You hardly ever put those in the -ing form: like, love, hate, want, need, know, understand, believe. You say I want a drink, not I'm wanting a drink.
Am/is/are + verb + -ing for what is happening now or for a while. Habits in the present simple. Verbs like like, want, know and need are not used in the -ing form.
Examples to listen to
Look, the bus is coming.
Look points to something happening now.
We're having lunch at the moment.
At the moment: going on now. Have lunch is an action, so -ing is fine.
She is running to the station.
A short word, vowel + consonant: the n doubles.
I usually walk to school, but today I'm taking the bus.
The habit in the present simple, today in the present continuous.
I know the answer.
Know is a thinking verb: no -ing.
Worked example
Fill in: Listen, my brother ___ (sing) in the shower. He ___ (sing) every morning.
Listen points to something happening now: present continuous.
One person, so is, and sing becomes singing: is singing.
Every morning is a habit: present simple with -s: sings.
- Answer
Listen, my brother is singing in the shower. He sings every morning.
Do it
Pick a level. You get a new exercise every time, checked straight away.
Pitfalls
Wrong: I playing a game.
An -ing form on its own is not a full sentence. You need am, is or are.
Right: I am playing a game.
Wrong: What do you do now? I eat.
Dutch says ‘ik eet’, but for something going on now English uses the -ing form.
Right: What are you doing now? I'm eating.
Wrong: I'm liking this song.
Like, love, want, need and know are about feelings or knowing, not an action. They stay in the present simple.
Right: I like this song.
Wrong: She is makeing pancakes.
When the verb ends in a silent e, it drops before -ing.
Right: She is making pancakes.
In real life
- In a message to your mum on the school trip: We're having lunch in Canterbury. It's raining but we're having fun.
- A football commentator talks like this all the time: He's running down the wing, he's passing to Kane...
- In an online game: Wait, I'm coming. I'm reloading.
History
English has had this form with to be and -ing for a very long time. But in old texts, such as Shakespeare, you also read What do you read? where we would now say What are you reading? The -ing form only became as common as it is today later on.
At the table
Play What am I doing? Someone acts something out without words: brushing their teeth, cycling, cooking. The others guess with a full sentence: You're brushing your teeth. Whoever guesses right goes next.
Something to do or talk about together, for parents and children. Mistakes are fine.