Present Continuous

Hi there!
How easy it is indeed, and how hard it is for you! How many times do I tell you? "The Present Continuous is not just the verb ending in -ing." You won't have a Present Continuous without the auxiliary verb 'be'. No way, you always forget that you have got to place am/is/are in front of the -ing verb.

This publication is dedicated to the Present Continuous, a tense expressing present actions with some nuances, however, which tell it from the Present Simple. Before we learn how to use the Present Continuous, let us see how we form it both in the affirmative, in the negative and questions. Here I present some examples showing the Continuous Present tense:
I am talking to Mary. (Estoy hablando con María)
She is having a shower. (Ella está duchándose.)
Tom and his friends are playing football in the garden. (Tom y sus amigos están jugando al fútbol en el jardín)

As you see, in order to form the Present Continuous we use the verb 'be' as the auxiliary and the main verb in gerund (the name we give to the verb ending in -ing).

What is important is to know how to form the gerund, and then, insert the verb 'be' functioning as the auxiliary. And remember, once again, this tense is the combination of the verb 'be' and the gerund, the sentence would be wrong if one of the two is missing.
 Elena está viendo la tele
Helen watching TV (Nooooooooooooooo!!!!)
Helen is watch TV (Nooooooooooooooo!!!!)
Helen is watching TV (Yeesssssssss!!!)

To  make it negative we must place the adverb 'not' between the auxiliary and the main verb. To make it a question, we just move the auxiliary to the front of the sentence, then the subject and after, the gerund.
I am not speaking. They're not watching TV.
He isn't reading the book.
Are you washing the car?
Is Anna playing tennis?
Are the children listening to the radio? 

This tense can be used to express different things, and in different circumstances:
1) To refer to actions that are happening at the same time that we speak:
She's talking on the telephone.
They are walking to school now.

2) To describe things that happen around the time when we speak, not necessarily now. In this sense, describes time incomplete actions:
This year my children are studying français.
They're building a new school here.

It can also express future, but we will leave aside this use for now.


¡Hola!
¡Qué fácil parece, pero que difícil os resulta! ¿Cuántas veces os lo digo?: "El Present Continuous no es sólo el verbo acabado en -ing." Sin el verbo 'to be' no tenemos Present Continuous. Pues nada, siempre se os olvida que hay que poner am/is/are delante del verbo en -ing.

Esta publicación está dedicada al presente continuo, tiempo verbal que expresa acciones del presente pero con ciertos matices que lo diferencian del presente simple. Antes de ver como se usa el presente continuo, vamos a ver como se forma, tanto en la forma afirmativa, como en la negación y en las preguntas. A continuación os presento unos ejemplos en donde se muestra la conjugación del presente continuo. A partir de ellos veremos como se forma este tiempo verbal:

I am talking to Mary. (Estoy hablando con María)
She is having a shower. (Ella está duchándose.)
Tom and his friends are playing football in the garden. (Tom y sus amigos están jugando al fútbol en el jardín)

Como ves, para formar el Present Continuous utilizamos el verbo 'to be' como auxiliar, y el verbo principal en gerundio (que es el nombre que tiene el verbo acabado en -ing).

Lo importante es saber construir el gerundio, y una vez hecho esto, intercalar el verbo to be para utilizarlo como auxiliar. Y recordad, una vez más, que este tiempo es la combinación del verbo 'to be' y el gerundio, la frase sería incorrecta sin uno de ellos:
Elena está viendo la tele
Helen watching TV (Nooooooooooooooo!!!!)
Helen is watch TV (Nooooooooooooooo!!!!)
Helen is watching TV (Yeesssssssss!!!)

Para negar el presente continuo tenemos que colocar el adverbio not entre el auxiliar y el verbo principal. Para hacer preguntas tenemos que poner primero el auxiliar y después el sujeto, seguido del gerundio.
I am not speaking. They're not watching TV.
He isn't reading the book.
Are you washing the car?
Is Anna playing tennis?
Are the children listening to the radio?

Este tiempo verbal podemos usarlo para expresar distintas cosas; y en diferentes circunstancias:
1) Para referirnos a acciones que están sucediendo en el mismo momento en el que se habla:
She's talking on the telephone.
They are walking to school now.

2) Para describir cosas que suceden alrededor del momento en el que estamos hablando, no necesariamente ahora. En este sentido, describe acciones temporales incompletas:
This year my children are studying French.
They're building a new school here.

También puede expresar futuro, pero ese uso lo dejaremos de lado por el momento.

Practice:
Exercise1, Exercise2, Exercise3.