Questions tagged [present-perfect-progressive]

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I haven’t liked it lately or I haven’t been liking it lately. Which is better to use?

I haven’t liked it lately I haven’t been liking it lately. Which one is better? I do feel like the latter is more of a conversational form, isn’t it? And obviously “like” is a non-continuous verb. ...
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Why is the sentence "Mark has finished watching TV." correct?

Mark has finished watching TV. I have been thinking about this question for a while. Isn't the above sentence is in the present perfect continuous tense? I was thinking why "finished watching TV&...
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I'm reading a book or I've been reading a book? Implying I started some days ago

I saw a similar question, but I'm not content with the answers, i.e. it's still unclear. It looks like both options are appropriate here, since for present perfect continuous can be applied to an ...
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Do I have to parallel tenses in this question?

I have just returned to my hometown after working and living in Rome for 5 years. I do not work or live in Rome anymore. I meet someone who says: "I haven't seen you in a while, what have you ...
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Today I have been meeting and today I have met

Is there any difference between "Today I have been meeting some of the people affected by the flood" and "Today I have met some of the people affected by the flood"? Does "...
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They have liked the idea of me starting my own business

They have liked the idea of me starting my own business. I've liked the song since my childhood. I've been liking the song since my childhood. Q1) I think sentence (3) is not absolutely correct ...
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Does "I have been meeting many people for the past few days" imply I will continue to meet people?

I've read that the sentence "I have been meeting many people for the past few days" implies I will continue to meet people. Why is that the case? To me, the sentence means that I have been ...
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Is it idiomatic to write “have been having a holiday”?

Is it idiomatic to use "have been having a holiday"? We have had a vacation since last week. / We have been on vacation since last week. We have been having a vacation since last week. Are ...
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Why is 'love' used in the present continuous form here?

I am reading a book called 'High School grammar' by P.C Wren and H.Martin. We know 'love' falls in the category of stative verbs, but they have used the word 'love' in the present continuous/present ...
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I have been buying a car this week

I have come across a clip where someone says: "I have been buying a car this week". He bought the car for less than the asking price and is very pleased. Then he continues to explain the ...
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How long have you stayed or How long have you been staying

Are both the present perfect and the present perfect progressive correct in the following? If so, what's the difference? I prefer the present perfect progressive because the stay seems to be going on. ...
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Why is the perfect used instead of past continuous in "Every time I've visited her...she has been working hard"?

Every time I've visited her in the last month, she has been working hard. This is a sentence from a grammar textbook. I don't understand why we use Present Perfect Continuous instead of Past ...
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What is the difference between: "I am reading a lot these days" and 'I have been reading a lot these days'?

What is the difference between: "I am reading a lot these days" and "I have been reading a lot these days"? As far as I can tell, they can both describe temporary situations. Can I ...
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Have you been riding your bike? Focus on activity?

What have you been doing during lock down? Have you been riding your bike or going for walks? Does this mean someone has ridden their bike multiple times or not necessarily? Or is the present perfect ...
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Are you or have you been and recently. Why are both tenses used in this sentence?

I have seen this question on a new client form for a fitness studio. It says: "Are you exercising or have you been exercising recently?" If yes, please describe. Does this mean: "Are ...
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The present simple, the present continuous or the present perfect continuous when used with the time marker "these days"?

Could you tell me if all the following sentences are grammatically correct and natural? These days lots of scientists try to solve the problem of pollution. These days lots of scientists are trying ...
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"What have you done since you got up this morning?" or "What have you been doing since you got up this morning?" [duplicate]

Why I have to use here Present Perfect or Present Perfect Continous? Do both mean the same? What have you done since you got up this morning? What have you been doing since you got up this morning?
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people who have been protesting against

This is from a newspaper article: "we would like to hear from people who have been protesting against the controversial ruling." "If you have taken part in protests we would like to ...
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Have you been washing your hair in the sink?

I find some hair in the sink. Can I ask "Have you been washing your hair in the sink?" without being angry or disapproving? I am just asking about the activity that leads to the hair in the ...
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I have climbed/been climbing a mountain?

I have climbed a mountain and I have reached the top, but I am exhausted. Should I say: "I am exhausted because I have just climbed a mountain", meaning I have reached the top and therefore ...
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Have you been doing any exercise today?

Let's say an elderly person is asked if they have been doing any physical exercise that day and they answer: "yes, I've been walking around the house, pottering in the garden and climbing the ...
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Today I have been

A women who has just had an operation is surprised and happy she isn't in any pain. She says: "I thought for sure I'd be in a lot more pain and would find it difficult doing things but today I ...
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"I have waited for you for two hours" vs. "I've been waiting for you for two hours"

Could you tell me if there is any difference in meaning between the following sentences? I have waited for you for two hours. I'm leaving. I have been waiting for you for two hours. I'm leaving.
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"Until now I have been living in the city for a year" or "until now I had been living in the city for a year"?

Could you tell what tense I use after until now in the following context: the present perfect continuous or the past perfect continuous? I have finally moved to the countryside. Untill now I have ...
Dmytro O'Hope's user avatar
1 vote
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124 views

Present perfect continuous for a short action?

This is from a novel: The police is called because a man has urinated in a parking lot. When the police arrive 5 minutes later they ask the man: "Have you been urinating in the parking lot, sir?&...
anouk's user avatar
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Can "has been smoking" be used in this situation?

If someone has smoked one cigarette in a room and I can smell it, can I say "someone has been smoking here" even though it was only one cigarette? Another example is if my neighbour's cat ...
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It smells like someone has smoked here or it smells like someone has been smoking here

I have come across reviews of hotels where people state that: "The hotelroom smells like someone has smoked there". I thought that "someone has smoked there" means that smoking has ...
anouk's user avatar
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Present Perfect or Present Perfect Continuous

If the Present Perfect is used to focus on the completed action and on the result, why do we say: "I have been cycling (Present Perfect Continuous) all day and my legs are really tired now."...
Lucy's user avatar
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Why "your device has been repaired" instead of "your device is repaired"?

I think "have been" is basically used to express an action that was started in past and is still happening up to present. Now sometimes we use "have been" in the following contexts ...
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Time clauses and present perfect progressive

I have found a rule that we cannot use future forms when using time clauses including expressions such as: while, before, after, until/till, as, once, as soon as, as long as, by the time Does this ...
bridgemnc's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
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Present simple or present perfect continuous to express routine

If I want to ask someone about their handwashing routine, is there any difference between "Do you wash your hands regularly?" or "Have you been washing your hands regularly?" or ...
anouk's user avatar
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Which tense to use in this example?

I have lied to someone about something, on one occassion, and I want to confess. Should I say :"I have lied to you", or could I also say: "I have been lying to you", or is the ...
anouk's user avatar
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1 vote
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How to emphasise that a new habit was developed?

How to talk about habit that was developed lately? If I want to say that lately I have developed habit of running (using present perfect progressive) I would say: I have been running a lot lately. But ...
bridgemnc's user avatar
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1 answer
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How to ask time using present perfect continuous

Today, while teaching one of my students about present perfect continuous one of them asked how to ask time while using present perfect continuous. I want to ask what was the time when he started say ...
kuldeep sharma's user avatar
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Tense agreement when one recent activity is interrupted by another

I wrote this sentence but I'm not convinced the tenses are correct. I've been waiting for this book for a few weeks, and it has just come out In the first clause, I used present perfect continuous ...
bassneck's user avatar
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Can we omit the preposition FOR when show how long something has been happening/has happened and so on

Came across two sentences w/o for and became curious if it's correct and appropriate. They have been together __ four years. I have been waiting __ two hours, can't believe she stood me up.
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Difference in meaning - 'started climbing' v 'has been climbing' [closed]

What is the difference between them: He started climbing at the age of 11. He has been climbing since he was 11. For me they are same and I don't see difference.
Alk99's user avatar
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Use Present Perfect Progressive to demand an explanation?

So I've been taught that Present Perfect Progressive is sometimes used to emphasize the continuity of an action, as an explanation or an excuse: I'm so tired because I've been running for two hours. ...
Charlotte Estelle's user avatar
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which is the better option to express continuation?

I have been playing a lot today. I have played a lot today. Can either be used if the day isn't over and I might continue playing? Or does the present perfect mean I have stopped playing for the day?
anouk's user avatar
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connotation difference between "have debated" and "have been debating"

It is said that the present perfect continuous tense is used to: describe the duration of an ongoing action; emphasize the effect of a recent action on the present. However, I have also seen the ...
Kent Tong's user avatar
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How long is it? Vs How long has it been?

1). How long is it since you were in London? 2). How long has it been since you were in London? What is the difference in meaning between these two sentences?
ramteja guthikonda's user avatar
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Has Been usage in different contenxts

Patanjali Ayurveda’s claimed cure for Covid-19 has been criticised for making unsubstantiated claims of efficacy. What does this mean? It was criticised some time back and that effect is still there ...
ramteja guthikonda's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
616 views

"Lately I meet" vs. "lately I have been meeting"

Is there any difference in meaning between lately I meet and lately I have been meeting? I would've thought that lately is used with the Present Perfect Continuous, but in the 23rd episode of the 8th ...
Dmytro O'Hope's user avatar
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1 answer
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present perfect tense vs Present perfect continous tense usage

1)I have been waiting to do this for a long time. 2)I have waited to do this for a long time. Which one is correct? If both are correct, what is the difference in meaning between them??
Ramteja Guthikonda's user avatar
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3 answers
137 views

what is difference between present continuous and present perfect continuous

What is the difference between: I am loving her. and I have been loving her. Are there some errors out there in those sentences?
Ratnesh Aroskar's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
592 views

Confusion in tenses

Well, I was learning present perfect tenses today and I am confused between present perfect and present perfect continuous. I have grasped majority of the uses of these sentences but I am confused ...
Sudhir Sharma's user avatar
0 votes
1 answer
153 views

Present perfect tense vs Present perfect continous tense

I have eaten food for two hours. I have been eating food for two hours. Are both sentences correct? Do they mean same thing that, "They started eating two hours back and eating even now" ? ...
Ramteja Guthikonda's user avatar
1 vote
2 answers
132 views

perfect continous and perfect tenses

1) For the last six months I have been working on the thesis. 2)For the last six months I have worked on the thesis. I know that first sentence is correct. It means I started working six months ...
Ramteja Guthikonda's user avatar
0 votes
3 answers
84 views

Is my English tutor mistaken? Perfect tenses seem incorrect in this sentence

This was a question given to me by an English tutor. I was asked to choose between the Present Perfect Simple, or the Present Perfect Continuous for of the verb. -> "We ____________ on the next ...
RickSterling's user avatar
1 vote
0 answers
16 views

Using "now" with the past tense

I'm confused because I think the use of word "now" is kind of idiomatic in phrase 1, but on the other hand I think it should be as phrase 2. So, is it normal to use "now" with the past simple ???? 1-...
Mohamed kz's user avatar