The present perfect continuous (also called the present perfect progressive) is a verb form that we use to describe an action that started in the past and either recently finished or is still continuing. Although only about .7% of verbs in speech are in the past perfect, this verb tense can be very useful in certain situations.

Continue reading to learn how to form the present perfect continuous and when to use it, including tons of examples and charts!

Just to avoid confusion, continuous and progressive are just different names for this same thing. In some countries, one term is more common than the other, but continuous is more common overall, so we use that term.

Using the Present Perfect Continuous Tense in English

The present perfect continuous is a little bit tricky. If you find a website that claims to explain it in just a few sentences, you should be suspicious. We use this tense in a number of different situations, and it can have different meanings in those different situations.  We can look at three common ways that the present perfect progressive is used:

• to describe new routines,

• to describe recently completed actions, and

• for actions that are still continuing.

New Routines and Habits

In general, we use the simple present to talk about routines and habits: If I go jogging every day or a couple of times a week, I can simply say, I jog, right?

But what if this is a new habit? Maybe I have gone jogging every day for the past two weeks, so it is a routine, but it might feel funny to just say I jog. I am a jogger. In situations like this, where we want to demonstrate that a habit or routine is somewhat new, the present perfect continuous is the form that we want to use.

Here are a few more examples:

Recently Completed Actions

We also use the present perfect continuous to talk about actions that have just recently ended, especially when there is still evidence of that action. For example, after you paint, you may still have paint on your hands. To explain this, you would use the present perfect progressive:

Take a look at these other examples:

Notice that in each of these examples, there is sensory evidence (the mess, sweating, crying) of the recently completed actions (painting, exercising, fighting). This is almost always the case when using the present perfect continuous in this way.

Actions Still Happening with For and Since

This is probably the most common way that this verb form is used. This is very important: When we see the present perfect continuous with for or since, the action started at a specific time in the past and is still happening. Here are some examples:

In the first example, Michele still lives in Boston. In the second example, Juana still works at Apple. Again, when you see for or since with this verb tense, the action or situation described by the main verb is still continuing. See Signal Words, below, for more information about how we use for and since.

Here are more examples with for and since:

Forming the Present Perfect continuous

Formula

Forming the present perfect continuous isn’t difficult. You will always use the same formula:

have/has + been + VERBing

You could also think of it as simple steps, too:

1. First, choose either have (if the subject is plural or the pronouns I, you, we, or they) or has (if the subject is a singular noun, he, she, or it).

2. Then use been.

3. Then use your main verb with -ing.

Conjugation

Here is the verb work conjugated into the present perfect continuous.

Notice that we can see both the perfect and the continuous aspect in this form. Have been is the perfect aspect. Been verb-ing is continuous aspect.

Other Forms of the Present Perfect continuous

Negative Sentences

You always have two helping verbs in the present perfect continuous: have/has and been. To make a negative, simply put not in between them!

Because the present perfect continuous uses so many words, we often use contractions with not to make it a little shorter:

Questions

To make a question, simply put has/have before the subject.

Passive Voice

Making passive sentences with more complex verb forms like the present perfect continuous is extremely uncommon and almost always awkward in English. We really recommend that you rephrase a sentence to avoid creating such an awkward sentence.

See the awkwardness in the sentence above? If you really need to make a passive sentence in this verb form, we often use the get passive to avoid the unnatural combination of been being.

Put get in the present perfect progressive (has been getting, have been getting) and then the perfect form of the main verb. 

Signal Words

Recently or Lately

When we are talking about new routines and habits, it’s common to use the word recently or lately, which both have the same meaning in this sense. There is some flexibility in where we can put these words in a sentence, but the beginning or end of the clause is a safe bet.

Take a look at these examples:

Just

We can use the adverb just to emphasize that an action was completed in the immediate past, right before now. Because the present perfect continuous can talk about actions that stopped right before now, it is common to use just with it. Have a look at these examples:

For

We already said, the most important signal words with the present perfect progressive are for and since. They are important because they change the meaning. Whenever you see for and since with this verb form, you know the action is still true.

When we use for, we specify the duration of the action. This could be the number of minutes or weeks or years. It could also be a more general phrase like a really long time or a little while.

Since

While for is used with a duration, since is used to specify the point in time when the action began. That could be a time or date. It can also be another event described with a clause, like since I was a child.

check out these other free grammar resources:

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