Introduction The present perfect progressive tense, also present perfect continuous, expresses an action that begins in the past and lasts until a present or almost present moment. The timing of this action is not specified, instead, the result or process of the action is emphasised. The present perfect progressive is conjugated with the present form of have, the past participle of be and the present participle or -ing form of the main verb. Learn how to use and conjugate the present perfect progressive tense in English grammar. In the exercises, you can practise what you have learnt. Example Aaron has been repairing cars since he was sixteen years old. He has always wanted to be a mechanic. He has been working in this garage for ten years. As Aaron has been changing tyres all morning, his clothes are dirty now. When to use the present perfect progressive The present perfect progressive is similar to the present perfect, but we use it to express a continuing or unfinished action, or emphasise an action rather than a result. Here are the three main uses of the present perfect continuous to express an action in the recent past with emphasis on the action itself and not the result Example Aaron has been changing tyres all morning. to express a single continuing action that started in the past and is incomplete at the present moment Example He has been working in this garage for ten years. He still works in the garage, therefore the action is incomplete. to express repeated actions that started in the past and continue now. Example Aaron has been repairing cars since he was sixteen years old. Take a closer look at the difference between the present perfect and the present perfect progressive in English grammar in the tense comparison section of the website. Signal Words English Present Perfect Progressive Signal words can help us to recognise the tense in a sentence. The signal words for the present perfect progressive are all day, the whole week for 4 years, since 1993, how long? lately Conjugation of English Present Perfect Progressive Tense To conjugate the present perfect progressive we follow the rule have/has + been + verb in the -ing form. The table below provides an overview of conjugations of the present perfect progressive in positive, negative and interrogative sentences. Present Participle – Spelling Rules The present participle is generally formed by adding -ing to the base form of a verb. However, there are a few exceptions to this rule An -e at the end of the word is removed, but -ee, -oe and -ye remain unchanged. Example come – coming but agree - agreeing The final consonant is doubled in words that have a short stressed vowel before the final consonant. However, -w, -x and -y are not doubled. Example sit – sitting but mix – mixing An -l as a final consonant after a vowel is always doubled in British English but not in American English. Example travel – travelling British traveling American An -ie at the end of the word is replaced with a -y Example lie – lying Contractions Contractions are a combination of certain pronouns, verbs and the word not. They are mostly used in spoken and informal written English. The table below provides an overview of contractions in the present perfect progressive tense using the verb have. To Note The contracted form of have is generally only used after pronouns. Example They’ve been repairing cars in the morning. but not The men’ve been repairing cars in the morning. But the contraction of has is possible after nouns as well as pronouns unless the noun already ends with -s. Example He’s/Aaron’s not been repairing cars in the morning. Online exercises to improve your English Improve your English with Lingolia. Each grammar topic comes with one free exercise where you can review the basics, as well as many more Lingolia Plus exercises where you can practise according to your level. Check your understanding by hovering over the info bubbles for simple explanations and handy tips. Present Perfect Progressive – Free Exercise Present Perfect Progressive – mixed exercise Lingolia Plus English Unlock all grammar exercises for English with a Lingolia Plus account 983 interactive grammar exercises for English sorted by topic and level A1–C1 with a built-in progress tracker and awards system Get started with Lingolia Plus Present Perfect Progressive – Lingolia Plus Exercises Present Perfect Progressive – have or has A2 Present Perfect Progressive – spelling test B1 Present Perfect Progressive – affirmative 1 B1 Present Perfect Progressive – affirmative 2 B1 Present Perfect Progressive – negative 1 B1 Present Perfect Progressive – negative 2 B1 Present Perfect Progressive – questions 1 B1 Present Perfect Progressive – questions 2 B1 Present Perfect Progressive – questions 3 B1 Present Perfect Progressive – short answers B1 Present Perfect Progressive – mixed 2 B1 Present Perfect Progressive – for/since B1 Present Perfect Progressive – How long? B2 Present Perfect Progressive – recently completed actions B2 Present Perfect Progressive – single continuing action 1 B2 Present Perfect Progressive – single continuing action 2 B2 Present Perfect Progressive – repeated actions B2 A1Beginner A2Elementary B1Intermediate B2Upper intermediate C1Advanced