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Is there any difference in meaning between:

She has been continuously harassed by a cop.

And

She has continuously been harassed by a cop.

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  • Interesting question. I want to know if one is more emphatic then the other.
    – learner
    Commented Jan 19, 2014 at 8:53
  • @learner I can't detect any difference in emphasis. I think the basic, unmarked word order is that of the first sentence, which might suggest the other would have extra emphasis (on continuously, probably), but if so, it's too subtle for me to notice while I'm thinking about it.
    – user230
    Commented Jan 19, 2014 at 10:06

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There's no difference as such.

COCA gives 4 results of has continuously been over 18 of has been continuously that means that the latter one is pretty common with native speakers.

Additionally, this question's answers may give a little help understanding splitting of two otherwise joined words.

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  • Could one be more emphatic?
    – learner
    Commented Jan 19, 2014 at 8:52
  • 2
    There's no difference in emphasis. It's entirely a speaker's decision as to which one sounds better to them, and in their estimate will sound better to the listener. If there's no listener (i.e, if it's writing), then it seems to be random.
    – John Lawler
    Commented Jan 19, 2014 at 17:34

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