Present Perfect Continuous Tense

Tense does not only mean stress or tightness but tense also has a grammatical meaning and role in English language. It is one of the main components of English grammar and decides the existence of the verb in a sentence.

In today’s article I will talk about tenses and what it means from a grammatical point of view. Also I will discuss present perfect continuous tense in detail.

Tense

Tense is described as the quality of a verb which occurs in a sentence and which describes the time frame of the action taking place. In simpler terms, the occurrence of action of a sentence is depicted by the tense of that sentence.

Example:

He likes bananas.

In the above example, the verb likes indicates that the action is taking place right now and is not an event of the past or future, thus we know that the tense of this sentence is present.

The basic categorization of tense is that it can exist in three forms which are past, present and future. This means that a verb also comes in three forms i.e. past, present and future.

Present Tense

A verb is said to be in present tense when the action it is describing is taking place right now or in the present.

Example:

She sings well.

This example makes use of first form of verb i.e. sings and thus it indicates that the action is of present.

But is doesn’t end there. The present tense is further divided into different forms and types which include present indefinite tense, present continuous tense, present perfect tense and present perfect continuous tense.

Today I will talk about present perfect continuous tense.

Present Perfect Continuous Tense

Present perfect continuous tense indicates that the action described by the verb started in the past and is continuing in the present.

Example:

They have been laughing for the last hour.

The above example indicates that the action i.e. laughing started in the past i.e. an hour ago and is continuing in the present, thus the verb used is in its present perfect continuous form.

The verb exists in present perfect continuous tense when the first form of verb is used and has been or have been is added before it to represent continuity.

Example:

Sara has been waiting in line for quite some time.

The above sentence makes use of first form of verb with has been before it which indicates that the tense of the sentence or verb is present perfect continuous.