The Perfect Continuous Tenses are formed by means of the auxiliary verb to have in the Present, Past or Future Perfect Tense and Participle Iof the main verb.
| Present Perfect Continuous | Past Perfect Continuous | Future Perfect Continuous |
| since 1980, for ten years, for a long time, for years, all day, all my life … | for some time, for an hour, since 3 o’clock, when he came … | for 5 years, by this time, by the end of the year … |
| + | ||
| Shave / has been Ving | Shad been Ving | S shall /will have been Ving |
| Nick has been writinghisexercises for two hours already. | The class had been discussingthe article for some time when Henry came in. | I will have been livingin Rome for three years next May. |
| - | ||
| S haven’t/hasn’t been Ving | S hadn’t been Ving | Sshan’t / won’t have been Ving |
| Jane hasn’t been workingvery well recently. | They hadn’t been waiting even 15 minutes when he came. | I shall not have been workingat this problem even for half a month by your next visit. |
| ? | ||
| Have/HasSbeen Ving? | Had S been Ving…? | Shall/WillShave been Ving …? |
| Haveyou been writingthis book all these years? | For how long hadthe children been playing on the computer when father arrived? | For how long willyou have been workingon this project when the director arrives again? |
EXERCISES
1.Translate into Ukrainian.
1.We’ve been learning English for 6 years. 2.Sorry about the mess: I’ve been painting the house since lunchtime. 3.Jane hasn’t been working very well recently. 4.Mr Brown has been waiting for half an hour. 5.I have been studying at the University since 2002. 6.How long have you been learning English? 7.I had been waiting for you half an hour when you came. 8.We had been playing football for half an hour when there was a terrible storm. 9.They had been discussing this problem for some time when John came in. 10.Jill had been studying English for five years before she visited the USA. 11.Jane was very tired. She had been doing her room since afternoon. 12.Her eyes were red. It was clear she had been crying. 13.Miss Honey will have been teaching for 10 years this summer. 14.By 6 o’clock John will have been playing on the computer for five hours. 15.We’ll have been flying non-stop for four hours before we get to Rome.
2.Make the following sentences negative and interrogative.
1.The film has been running for a month. 2.They have been waiting for the director since two o’clock. 3.The boy has been keeping the book for a month already. 4.The students have been translating the text for an hour and a half. 5.It has been raining since the morning. 6.He had been sitting here for forty minutes when the telephone rang. 7.At eight in the morning we had been driving for six hours. 8.It was clear that they had been gossiping again. 9.He had been looking for his glasses for an hour before he realized he had them in his pocket. 10.They will have been sitting here for twenty minutes when I come. 11.Tomorrow it will be a month as they have been working on this project. 12.We’ll have been working on this book for a year soon.
3.Complete the sentences using the verbs in brackets in the Present Perfect Continuous Tense.
1. Lunch is not ready yet, though I ______ all morning. (to prepare) 2. He cannot read English books, though he ______ for a year. (to learn English) 3. The boys are sure that their friend will come, though they _____ for half an hour. (to wait) 4. Her dress looks quite new, though she ______ for a few months. (to wear)
4.Ask questions with how long.
M O D E L: It is raining. How long has it been raining?
1.My foot is hurting. How long ______ ?
2.Mike plays chess. _______________
3.Jim sells washing machines. _______________
4.Tom is living in High Street. _______________
5.My mother teaches English. ________________
6.It is snowing. ________________
5.Use the Present Perfect Continuous Tense in the following sentences, make use of the adverbial modifiers suggested in the brackets (watch the change in the meaning).
M O D E L 1: He has already written this letter. (since morning)
He has been writing this letter since morning.
1.They have already built the theatre. (for two years) 2.We have discussed all these problems. (the whole month) 3.I have helped her with her work. (since she came to this office) 4.He has just read this book. (all week) 5.She has taught them how to do it. (for years) 6.Has he read the book? (long) 7.I’ve looked through today’s newspapers. (since the postman brought them)
M O D E L 2: They are playing tennis now. (since lunch time)
They have been playing tennis since lunch time.
1.It’s snowing hard. (since early morning) 2.I’m looking for a book which I’ve put somewhere. (since I returned from the office) 3.She is wearing a brown hat today. (for three years) 4.They are making tractors at this factory (since 1935) 5.They are translating an article from the Kyiv Post now. (for two hours) 6.The baby is crying. (all morning) 7.I’m reading David Copperfield now. (this week) 8.She is waiting for you in the hall. (for twenty minutes)
6.Practise the Past Perfect Continuous Tense according to the model.
M O D E L 1: He was short of breath because (run all the way)
He was short of breath because he had been running all the way.
1.His hands were dirty (work in the garden) 2.She passed all her examinations very well. (study hard throughout the term) 3.He was behind the group. (not study properly) 4.She got used to his strange way of life (live together for a long time). 5.She looked half asleep. (rest).
M O D E L 2: They drove for three hours. Then they stopped for lunch.
After they had been driving for three hours, they stopped for lunch.
1.We walked for an hour. Then we understood that we had taken the wrong road. 2.He waited for her for half an hour. Then he went away. 3.He worked at the laboratory for five years. Then he changed his job. 4.I thought the matter over for some time. Then I took a decision. 5.He looked through the latest newspapers and magazines for some time. Then he sat down to his report. 6.She watched the television late into the night. Then she could not sleep.
7.Choose the right tense:
a)Past Perfect or Past Perfect Continuous.
1.You were out of breath when you came in this morning. You (run)? 2.When mother got home she found that little Kitty (paint) her room. She (paint) two walls red and one wall yellow. 3.It (rain) for several days before the wind changed. 4.Jane told me she (write) regularly to her granny, but (not, receive) any answer. 5.We (cook) all day for the party that evening but by eight o’clock in the evening Jane (not, finish) laying the table yet.
b)Past Continuous or Past Perfect Continuous
1.Jim was on his hands and knees on the floor. He (look) for his cigarette lighter. 2.We (walk) along the road for about twenty minutes when a car stopped and the driver offered us a lift. 3.When I arrived, everyone was sitting round the table with their mouths full. They (eat). 4.When I arrived everyone was sitting round the table and talking. Their mouths were empty but their stomachs were full. They (eat). 5.When I arrived, Ann (wait) for me. She was rather annoyed with me because I was late and she (wait) for a very long time.
8.Open the brackets, using the Perfect Continuous tense forms.
1.What you (do) for the past two weeks? 2.Suddenly she understood that she (speak) for a long time and it was time to stop. 3.He (paint) this picture for two years and I don’t know when he is going to finish it. 4.He took out his watch and looked at it. It was two o’clock. It meant that he (wait) since 11 o’clock. 5.For the past few minutes I (try) to explain you that you can’t make me go there. 6.The children (fight) for some time when the door opened and the teacher came into the classroom. 7.Peter who (write) something for some time in silence, suddenly joined in the discussion. 8.You’re sure you are well, Jack? I (think) that this work is a bit too hard for your age.
9.Translate into English.
1.Що ти тут робиш? – Чекаю автобуса. – Скільки часу ти чекаєш його? – Я чекаю його вже десять хвилин. 2.Ми вивчаємо англійську мову. Ми вивчаємо її вже чотири роки. 3.З якого часу його батько працює головним інженером заводу? 4.Дощ іде зранку. 5.Ганна загубила ручку, вона вже чверть години шукає її. 6.Микола закінчив середню школу три роки тому. З того часу він працює на заводі. 7.Коли ви почали читати цю книжку? Скільки часу ви читаєте її? 8.Студенти вже півтори години обговорюють фільм, який вони бачили вчора. 9.Коли я увійшов до аудиторії, мої одногрупники обговорювали план екскурсії. Вони обговорювали його вже двадцять хвилин. 10.Коли Тетяна закінчила інститут, її сестра вже п’ять років викладала англійську мову у школі. 11.Його батьки залишили квартиру, в якій вони прожили двадцять років. 12.Я шукав свій зошит півгодини, перш ніж знайшов його під газетою. 13.Вчора листоноша приніс мені лист. Я чекав цього листа три тижні. 14.Коли ми вийшли з дому, йшов дощ. Він йшов уже дві години.
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