The present continuous, part 1 of 3

Present Continuous in English: Affirmative and the -ing Rule (I Am Working)

For what is happening now: am, is, or are plus the verb with -ing. I am working, she is reading.

A1 · 14 minBefore:Do, does, don't, or doesn't

The idea

What the present continuous is

It is the form for what is happening now or these days, not what always happens.

It is happening now. At this moment: She is talking on the phone.
It is happening these days. For a while, even if not right now: I am learning to drive.
It needs am, is, or are. Before the -ing verb: They are eating.

When to use it

To talk about what is happening right now or these days, not what always happens. These expressions go with it:

Now

now
right now
at the moment
today

These days

these days
this semester
this month
this year

When you point

Look!
Listen!

Examples

Right now
I am cooking dinner.
Someone else
My sister is studying for a test.
Several people
The kids are playing in the yard.
The weather
It is raining again.
These days
We are painting the house this week.
What you see
Look! The bus is coming.

How to build it

3 steps

Start with the subjectWho is doing something:She
Add am, is, or areAs with the verb to be: I am, she is, they are:She is
Add the verb with -ingWith the spelling rules below:She is reading.

Affirmative

SubjectThey
am / is / areare
verb + -ingwatching
complementa movie.

How to spell -ing

Look at how the verb ends

Most verbsworkworkingadd -ing

eateating
playplaying
readreading

Ends in a silent emakemakingdrop the e

writewriting
dancedancing
taketaking

One syllable: consonant, vowel, consonantrunrunningdouble the last letter (not w, x, y)

swimswimming
sitsitting
getgetting

Ends in ielielyingie becomes y

diedying
tietying

The rule

With each subject

Subject	Full form	Short form
I	I am working	I'm working
you, we, they	they are working	they're working
he, she, it	she is working	she's working

How to pronounce it

working
/ˈwɝkɪŋ/
The final ng is one sound, /ŋ/, with no g after it.
making
/ˈmeɪkɪŋ/
The a still sounds like make: /eɪ/.
running
/ˈrʌnɪŋ/
Two n letters, one /n/ sound.
studying
/ˈstʌdiɪŋ/
The y stays: three syllables.

Check

Listen! Someone (blank) the piano. Which one goes in the blank?

Don't confuse it with the present simple

I am walking to work today.

Today: right now

I walk to work.

A habit

The continuous is for now or these days. What always happens goes in the present simple.

Part 3: simple or continuous

In real life

In speech people almost always use the short form: I'm coming!, She's sleeping, We're leaving. The full form sounds slower or stressed.

Frequently asked questions

Can the present continuous talk about the future?

Yes, for plans you already made: We are having dinner with Ana on Friday. You see that use in the future lessons.

How do you spell -ing with see, play, and fix?

See and play just add -ing (seeing, playing), and fix does not double the x: fixing. Verbs ending in w, x, or y never double the letter.

Are present continuous and present progressive the same?

Yes, they are two names for the same form: am, is, or are plus the verb with -ing.

In short

Now or these days: am / is / are + verb with -ing.
I am; he, she, it is; you, we, they are.
Make: making; run: running; lie: lying.
In speech, the short form: I'm working.

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