Present Continuous Positive and Negative

We use the present continuous (or the present progressive) tense when we speak about something happening now, at the moment of speaking.

We form the present continuous with the auxiliary verb  "to be" (am/is/are) and the main verb plus -ing ending:

am/is/are + doing / reading / looking / standing etc.

PronounAuxiliary verbMain verb
I am (not) infinitive + -ing
he
she
it		 is (not)
we
you
they		 are (not)

Examples

I am sleeping.

You are reading.

He is writing.

She is speaking.

We are going home.

They are working.

Spell verbs with -ing correctly!

  1. If the verb has one syllable and ends in a vowel + a consonant, then the last consonant doubles when we add -ing. Otherwise, the pronunciation will change.
    swim → swimming 
    run → running
  2. If the verb ends in a vowel + a consonant but has more than one syllable, then look which syllable is stressed. If it is the final syllable, we must double the consonant.
    prefer → preferring
    begin → beginning
  3. If the verb ends in -l, then -l doubles. It does not matter which syllable is stressed.
    travel → travelling
    cancel → cancelling
  4. If the verb ends in -e, the letter "e" disappears when we add -ing.
    come → coming 
    take → taking
  5. If the verb ends in -ie, the letters "ie" change to "-ying" when we add -ing.
    lie → lying 
    die → dying
Do exercises