GRAMMAR APPENDIX PRESENT CONTINUOUS. Other uses. 1. State verbs describe a continuing state, so do not usually have a continuous form: believe, belong, consist, contain, doubt, fit, have, know, like, love, matter, mean, need, own, prefer, seem, suppose, suspect, understand, want, wish. Some verbs have a stative meaning and a different active meaning. Examples be, depend, feel, have, measure, see, taste, think, weigh. STATE EVENT Jack is noisy Jillʼ s being noisy Deirdre has a Porsche Weʼre having an interesting trip ! I think he likes you ! Davidʼs thinking about getting a new job. The fish tastes awful! Iʼm just tasting the soup. I feel that you are wrong. Iʼm feeling terrible. This bag weighs a ton ! Weʼre weighing the baby. It depends what you mean. Iʼm depending on you to win the race. 2. Complaints about annoying habits You are always/constantly/continually/ making snide remarks about my cooking ! 3. With verbs describing change and development The weather is getting worse. More and more people are giving up smoking. 4. Emphasizing a temporary situation Jean is with us at the moment. The children are loving having her. 5. With some verbs describing mental states (e.g. find, realise, regret, think, understand) we use present continuous to emphasize that we have recently started to think about something or that we are not sure about it. I regret that the company has to be sold ( Iʼve made the decision and I ʻm sorry about it) Iʼm regretting my decision to give her the job. ( Iʼm aware that it was the wrong decision) 6. Some verbs called performatives ( acknowledge, advise, apologize, beg, confess, congratulate, declare, deny, forbid, name, permit, predict, promise, remind, request, warn...) have a similar meaning with either present simple or continuous in negative sentences. I donʼt deny/ am not denying taking the books.

PAST SIMPLE AND PAST CONTINUOUS We use Past Continuous to emphasize that the event or activity was in progress during a certain period of time and Past Simple to express completion of an action: When I was learning /learned to drive I was living with my parents. Was learning emphasizes that the activity was in progress ( I had lessons during this time) and learned emphasizes completion ( I passed my test during this time). We usually use past simple rather than past continuous to talk about repeated past actions and when two or more past completed events followed each other: 1. We went to Spain three times a year 2. She got up when the alarm clock went off. We use Past Simple in a narrative (e.g. to report a story) to talk about a single complete past event and the past continuous to describe the situation that existed at that time. She was shaking with anger as she left the hotel We use Past Continuous to express changing states: The car was getting worse all the time. One of the sidelights was falling off and the engine was making funny noises. PAST PERFECT AND PAST PERFECT CONTINUOUS We use Past Perfect if we want to refer to a finished activity before a past time : After Ivan had finished reading, he put out the light. They were given help and advice before they had made the decision. We use Past Perfect Continuous to talk about something that was in progress recently before or up to a past point in time. Iʼd been finishing some work in the garden when Sue arrived, or I didnʼt hear her come. If we want to emphasize the duration of the action we use Past Perfect Continuous: I first met Jane and Tom when they had been going out together for five years If we talk about how many times something happened in a period up to a particular past time we use past perfect: How many times had you met him before yesterday?

PRESENT PERFECT AND PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS We use Present Perfect to talk about or describe an action or situation started in the past which connects to the present: How long have you worked here? Iʼve worked here since 1997. Present Perfect Continuous describes an action or activity which go on over a period of time up to the present: Theyʼve been repairing our street and itʼs been causing a lot of traffic problems. We use present perfect as the present result of an earlier action: Weʼve made chicken soup. Thatʼs why everyone is eating. Would you like some? And present Perfect Continuous as an action in process going on from earlier up to the present. Weʼve been making chicken soup. Thatʼs why the kitchen is hot and steamy. FUTURE PERFECT AND FUTURE CONTINUOUS We use Future Perfect to express a complete action in the future: By the time we get there they will have already cleaned the house. We use Future Continuous to express and action in progress in the future: By June next year I will be taking my college exams