A : How much have we spent on food this week B : A lot.
In A’s sentence, if ‘this week’ would be ‘for this week’ then, could I use the present perfect continuous tense? Instead of ‘have we spent’. For example, How much have we been spending on food for this week.
Yes you can say it either way.
I think the first way (to my ears) asks for a specific amount in reply.
Where the second way seems perhaps rhetorical. As if you are pointing out the obvious answer (a lot) by merely asking the question.
But either can get the point across that we have been spending a lot this week. Or, in the right context, either can ask for a specific number in reply.
