Present perfect continuous

Uses

USE 1 Duration from the Past Until Now

We use the Present Perfect Continuous to show that something started in the past and has continued up until now. "For five minutes," "for two weeks," and "since Tuesday" are all durations which can be used with the Present Perfect Continuous.

Examples:

They have been talking for the last hour.

She has been working at that company for three years.

What have you been doing for the last 30 minutes?

James has been teaching at the university since June.

We have been waiting here for over two hours!

Why has Nancy not been taking her medicine for the last three days?

USE 2 Recently, Lately

You can also use the Present Perfect Continuous WITHOUT a duration such as "for two weeks." Without the duration, the tense has a more general meaning of "lately." We often use the words "lately" or "recently" to emphasize this meaning.

Examples:

Recently, I have been feeling really tired.

She has been watching too much television lately.

Have you been exercising lately?

Mary has been feeling a little depressed.

Lisa has not been practicing her English.

What have you been doing?

IMPORTANT

Remember that the Present Perfect Continuous has the meaning of "lately" or "recently." If you use the Present Perfect Continuous in a question such as "Have you been feeling alright?", it can suggest that the person looks sick or unhealthy. A question such as "Have you been smoking?" can suggest that you smell the smoke on the person. Using this tense in a question suggests you can see, smell, hear or feel the results of the action. It is possible to insult someone by using this tense incorrectly.

Time expressions

Typical time expression that are used with the present perfect continuous include 'since', 'for', 'all week', 'for days', 'lately', 'recently', 'over the last few months'.

• He's been working here since 2001.
• I've been wanting to do that for ten years.
• They haven't been answering all week.
• She hasn't been talking to me for days.
• I've been working hard lately.
• We've been looking at other options recently.
• You haven't been performing well over the last few months.

Structure

Check out this video to understand this topic better

Click here to do some exercises

 Remember that in present perfect continuous we always use ¨been¨