Present Perfect Continuous: How to Use

The present perfect continuous tense shows how an action which started in the past is still going on.

Cases

Examples

*Show how long an action has taken until now.

1. Boris and Michael have been talking for the last hour.

2. Gerald has been teaching English at the community college since May.

*Talk about time spent in a general way.

1. Recently, I have been running with sheep.

2. She has been watching too much Oprah lately.

Non-continuous and mixed verbs cannot be used in this tense.

Non-continuous verbs: actions you normally cannot see somebody doing.

Examples: to want, to possess, to belong, to exist

Mixed verbs: actions that can have more than one meaning.

Examples: to appear, to feel, to hear, to look

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Present Perfect Continuous Tense