The affirmative Present perfect continuous tense:
It consists of have/ has + the past participle form of the verb( to be)+ infinitive + (-ing)
I, we, you, they + have + pp (to be) infinitive + (-ing)
He, she, it +has + pp (to be) infinitive + (-ing)
For example:
I have been studying chemistry for 3 years.
Elena has been playing the piano since 2013.
Colombia has been taking over the tobacco industry.
The children have been teasing the kitten.
The negative present perfect continuous tense:
The subject + have/has + not + been + infinitive + (-ing)
For example:
- I have not been studying chemistry for 3 years.
- Elena has not been playing the piano since 2013.
- Colombia has not been taking over the tobacco industry.
- The children have not been teasing the kitten.
The interrogative the present perfect continuous tense:
How to make questions using the present perfect continuous tense:
Have/ has + the subject + been + infinitive + (-ing)..?
For example: I have been studying chemistry for 3 years.
Question: Have you been studying chemistry for 3 years?
Answer:
Yes, I have. / No, I have not.
Note: when constructing questions with question words, we add the question word before the last formulae as in:
Question: Where have you been studying chemistry for 3 years?
Answer: I have been studying chemistry for 3 years in London.
When to use the present perfect continuous tense?
The present perfect continuous tense is used for the same situations as the present perfect simple tense but the only difference lies in the fact that the present perfect continuous tense is used to:
Express actions that started and lasted for a continuing period in the past and are still continuing till our present time (using for/ since)
For example:
I have been studying English for 5 years.
That means that the speaker has learnt English for 5 years and still learning in the present time as well.
