The present perfect continuous tense

Illustrative situation

It is Saturday afternoon. Steve is cleaning the car. In fact, he has been cleaning it for over an hour, but has not finished yet. The children are busy. Kate is playing the violin. She has been practising the violin since morning. Mark is in the garden. He has been painting the fence since he got up. He hates it. He has painted only half of it.

How long have you been studying English?

What have you been doing all morning?

Has it been raining since 12 o'clock?

ЗАПАМ'ЯТАЙ!

Для вираження тривалої дії, яка почалась до тепе­рішнього моменту і закінчилась до цього моменту або ще триває, після підмета ставиться допоміжне дієсло­во to be в Present Perfect Tense, а за ним – четверта форма відмінюваного дієслова.

S +

have has

been Ving ...

It has been raining for an hour.

We have been studying English since 1990.

S +

have has

not been Ving ...

She has not been waiting long.

We have not been driving our car since Monday

Have Has

(not) S + been Ving …?

Have you been standing in the rain long?

Hasn't the bell been ringing for some time?

?	have has	(not) S + been Ving …?
W

Where have they been waiting for me?

Why hasn't he been sleeping well lately?

Who What

has (not) been Ving …?

Who has been playing the piano all this time in the neighbouring room?

Who has been singing so loudly since I returned home?

Exercises

Exercise 165. Read and say that you (your friend) have/has been doing it, too.

Model: – I have been writing a letter for half an hour.

– My sister has been writing a letter for half an hour, too.

1. William has been reading the book since last week.

2. The children have been writing a test since 10 o'clock.

3. Jane and Bill have been skating all the morning.

4. Alan has been learning to drive a car for a month.

5. Mary has been talking on the telephone for a quar­ter of an hour.

6. Lucy has been watching an interesting programme on TV for an hour.

7. Steve has been working in the garage since he came home.

8. I have been roasting meat for half an hour.

9. The tourists have been staying in the camp since the rain began.

10. Betty has been playing tennis since the morning.

Exercise 166. Say that you have been doing something else.

Model: – So you've been collecting coins since you graduated the University. (stamps)

– No, I've been collecting stamps since I graduated the University.

1. So you've been playing the piano since 1980. (violin)

2. So you've been painting the inside of the house since Monday. (outside)

3. So you've been singing in musicals since you were 18. (operas)

4. So you've been teaching English for several years. (learn)

5. So you've been playing squash this morning? (ten­nis)

6. So you've been reading a newspaper article for three hours? (write)

7. So you've been cooking fish the whole morning. (meat)

8. So you've been reading for your exam in mathe­matics those three days. (English literature)

9. So you've been spending a lot of time watching birds. (animals)

10. So you've been practising yoga since January. (learn Chinese)

Exercise 167. Fill in the blanks with the suitable verbs from the box. Use the correct form of the verb.

Model: – Robert ___ money for three years to buy a new car.

– Robert has been saving money for three years to buy a new car.

Do, listen, iron, repaper, spend, study, train, type, wash, work

1. Tom ___to the radio all morning.

2. Susan ___ the clothes for the last thirty minutes.

3. Barbara ___the kitchen for the last three weekends.

4. The secretary ___the letters since she came to the office in the morning.

5. Mother ___dishes since the dinner ended.

6. The children ___homework since they came from school.

7. The team ___hard this year.

8. Bob ___ as a taxi driver for many years.

9. Ann ___Spanish for at least two years.

10. You ___a lot of money recently.

Exercise 168. Fill in the blanks with ‘for’ or ‘since’.

Model: – The actors have been rehearsing the play for a month.

– Jane has been doing laundry since 8.30.

1. James has been wearing this suit ___ five years.

2. Mother has been cooking dinner ___ she returned from the market.

3. Alice has been skating on the pond ___ morning.

4. They have been revising the material for the exam __ three days.

5. She has been learning to drive a car ___ a fortnight.

6. It has been snowing heavily ___ Monday.

7. Ann has been practising yoga ___ three years.

8. The new secretary has been working here ___ April.

9. John has been living in Chicago ___ January.

10. David has been collecting coins___ he was a child.

Exercise 169. Respond as in the model.

Model: – Her dress is dirty. (work)

– No wonder. She's been working in the garden all day long.

1. Mary's apron is wet. (wash up)

2. Bill's health is ruined. (smoke a lot)

3. There are large pools of water in the street. (rain)

4. Jenny's shoes are worn out.

5. Richard and James look healthy. (go in for sport)

6. The children are wet to the skin. (walk in the rain)

7. John's sweater is ready. (knit)

8. Louise looks fresh and excited. (skate)

9. The roads are covered with deep snow. (snow)

10. It's an important discovery. (make experiments)

Exercise 170. Ask if the action has been taking place for a long time.

Model: – Lena is sleeping.

– Has she been sleeping long?

– Yes, for three hours. (No, for 15 minutes).

1. The actors are rehearsing a new play.

2. Mother is cooking dinner.

3. The children are skating on the pond.

4. Your sister is waiting for you.

5. The secretary is typing letters.

6. John is riding a bicycle.

7. Alice is taking her exam.

8. Mr Brown is looking for a job.

9. Nell is knitting a scarf.

10. The baby is crying.

Exercise 171. Ask how long the action has been taking place.

Model: – Peter has repaired a car.

– How long has he been repairing it?

– For three days.

1. I have cooked dinner.

2. We have prepared a concert.

3. David has written an essay.

4. Jane has made a new dress.

5. Mary has saved a big sum of money.

6. Kate and Victor have done their homework.

7. Paul has drawn a portrait of his mother.

8. Richard has painted the outside of the house.

9. Mother has washed the bedclothes.

10. We have papered the walls of the dining-room.

Exercise 172. Ask who exactly has been doing it.

Model: – He's been travelling much.

– Who's been travelling much?

– Chris has.

1. He has been working with this company since 1990.

2. She has been teaching English to foreign students since she left the college.

3. She has been working hard all the week.

4. He has been staying in bed for a week.

5. He has been swimming since he came to the river.

6. She has been making a cake the whole morning.

7. They have been playing in the yard since the rain stopped.

8. They have been having a rest since they returned from the expedition.

9. They have been walking in the rain without an umbrella.

10. She has been driving for years and has never had an accident.

Exercise 173. Translate the following.

1. Як довго ти читаєш цю книжку?

2. Моя сестра вивчає англійську мову вже три роки.

3. Вона виглядає стомленою. Гадаю, вона знову читала цілу ніч.

4. Покличте дітей обідати. Вони граються на по­двір’ї з самого ранку.

5. – Як довго ти вже водиш машину? – Три роки. Я купила її, коли переїхала в це місто.

6. – Чому ти виконуєш цю вправу так довго? – Я вже закінчую її.

7. – Ви вже довго чекаєте автобуса? – Ні, я тільки-но підійшов.

8. Я прала цю сукню весь ранок, але плями так і залишились.

9. – Ольга виглядає такою збудженою. – Вона складала екзамен з історії.

10. М’ясо ще тверде, хоч я його варю вже дві години.

Exercise 174. Translate the following.

1. – Що ти робила, поки я мила посуд? – Я чисти­ла килим.

2. У мене та сама машина, яку мав 5 років тому.

3. – Він палить уже 10 років. – Він не збирається це кинути?

4. – У Києві багато визначних місць. Ти бачив пам'ятник Богдану Хмельницькому? – Я ще не був у Києві.

5. – В аудиторії хто-небудь є? – Так, там студенти нашої групи. Вони складають екзамен. – Коли він закінчиться?

6. – Що ви робитимете після обіду? – Ми будемо пити каву, як завжди.

7. Я дуже голодний. Я з ранку нічого не їв.

8. Він відчинив двері, увімкнув світло і оглянувся навколо. Там нікого не було.

9. Вони поїдуть в Англію, як тільки отримають паспорти.

10. – Ви чули пташок, коли були в лісі? – Так, там було багато пташок, і вони чудово співали.

Exercise 175. Read the following jokes. Retell them.

JOKE

Patient: I keep thinking I'm a dog.

Doctor: How long have you been feeling like this?

Patient: Since I was a puppy.

A TRUE HEART

Father: My dear child, why don't you want to marry Mr Green? He really and truly loves you.

Daughter: How do you know that, Dad?

Father: Because I've been borrowing money from him for six months and still he keeps coming.

LIARS

Husband: Women are all liars; why does a woman say she has been shopping when she hasn't bought a thing?

Wife: But men are not better; why does a man say he has been fishing when he hasn't caught anything?

FAME

Factory Manager: How old are you, my boy?

Boy: I am twelve, sir.

Factory Manager: What is your name then?

Boy: George, sir.

Factory Manager: And what's your surname?

Boy: Stevenson, sir.

Factory Manager: A very well-known name, my lad.

Boy: No wonder, sir. I've been delivering milk about the district for about six months.

Exercise 176. a) Read the text and explain why Professor Paul Potter has been very busy lately.

Professor Paul Potter has been very busy lately. He has been giving lectures, writing articles, working on his new book and learning to type. During the last two weeks he gave six lectures and wrote two articles and one chapter of the new book. Besides, he has made considerable progress in typing. The Professor has to learn to type because his handwriting has become so bad that even Mrs Punch, his house­keeper and personal secretary, finds it difficult to read. Other people are simply unable to make out a single sentence. The Professor has been practising typing for five months now and is hoping to become quite experi­enced by next year. At present he is beginning to use a dictaphone. He has been using it for the past two months, but the results have not been satis­factory because the Professor has recently developed a halting way of speech. His critics have been try­ing to suggest that the Professor has developed a bad stammer and has been stammering ever since. He was frightened by a library mouse two years ago. Others are trying to insinuate that he was frightened by Mrs Punch, his faithful housekeeper and secretary. All that is a lie and the Professor's halty style is entirely due to the depth of his thoughts.

b) Read the text again and answer the following questions.

1. What has Professor Paul Potter been doing lately?

2. What did he do during the last two weeks?

3. Why does he have to learn to type?

4. How long has he been practising typing?

5. How long has he been using his dictaphone?

6. Why haven't the results been satisfactory?

7. What have his critics been trying to suggest?

8. What are other people trying to insinuate?

9. How can the Professor's halty style be explained?

c) Retell the text as if you were Professor Paul Potter.