Beginner · Grammar Reference
Unit 13 — What's happening now?
Present Continuous · Present Simple vs Continuous
13.1 Present Continuous
Positive
| Subject | To be | Verb |
|---|
| I | am | |
| He / She / It | is | working. |
| You / We / They | are | |
Negative
| Subject | To be (neg.) | Verb |
|---|
| I | 'm not | |
| He / She / It | isn't | working. |
| You / We / They | aren't | |
Questions with question words
| Q. word | To be | Subject | Verb |
|---|
| am | I | |
| are | you / we / they | |
| What | | | wearing? |
| is | he / she | |
Yes / No questions and short answers
| Question | Yes | No |
|---|
| Are you wearing jeans? | Yes, I am. | No, I'm not. |
| Is she reading a newspaper? | Yes, she is. | No, she isn't. |
13.2 Present Simple and Present Continuous
1 We use the Present Simple to talk about actions that are true for all time or a long time.
Hans comes from Germany.I love you.My father works in a bank.I get up at 7.30 every day.She doesn't understand French.2 We use the Present Continuous to talk about actions that last a short time. The actions are happening now.
I usually wear jeans, but today I'm wearing a suit.He speaks French very well. He's speaking French to that man.It's raining.They're swimming.We're playing football.