Present Perfect and

Present Perfect
Continuous
Lesson 1: Review

Present Perfect: Have/Has + Past Participle (e.g., I

have eaten, She has gone)

Present Perfect Continuous: Have/Has + Been +

Verb-ing (e.g., I have been eating, She has been going)
Lesson 2: Specific Differences

Duration vs. Completion:

Present Perfect suggests an action is completed, while Present

Perfect Continuous suggests an action has been happening for some
time and may still be happening.

Example: "I have read this book." (It is completed) vs. "I have been
reading this book." (I started it in the past and might still be reading it)
Permanent vs Temporary Situations:

Present Perfect can often imply a more permanent situation,

while Present Perfect Continuous often implies a more
temporary situation.
Example: "I have lived in London for five years." (This is a more
permanent situation) vs. "I have been living in London for five
years." (This is more temporary, suggesting that I might not live
there much longer)
Repetition vs Ongoing:

Present Perfect can imply an action has happened many times

before now, while Present Perfect Continuous suggests an
ongoing process.

Example: "I have run a marathon." (This happened perhaps many

times in the past) vs. "I have been running a marathon." (I started
running a marathon and am still running)
Lesson 3: Exceptions and Special Cases

There are a number of verbs that are typically not used in the
continuous form. Some of these include stative verbs like 'know',
'understand', 'believe', 'remember', 'seem', 'love', etc.

Example: "I have known him for ten years." (NOT "I have been knowing
him for ten years.")
Here is a list of some stative verbs, which are typically not used in the
continuous form:

Mental states: believe, know, understand, remember, forget

Emotional states: love, hate, like, dislike, prefer, fear, feel (meaning 'have
an opinion')

Senses: see, hear, taste, smell, feel (meaning 'sense through touch')

Others: seem, belong, want, need, own, possess

Explanations:

These verbs are not typically used in the continuous form because they describe a
state or condition that is relatively constant, rather than an action that is ongoing.

For example, one would typically say "I have known him for ten years" rather than
"I have been knowing him for ten years," because "knowing" is a state of
understanding or awareness that is continuous and unchanging, rather than an
action that is performed over time.

Similarly, "I have loved chocolate since I was a child" is preferred over "I have been
loving chocolate since I was a child," because "loving" is an emotional state, not an
ongoing action.
Lesson 4: Practice Exercises

Gap-fill:

I ____ (live) in New York for three years.

She ____ (play) the piano since she was seven.
They ____ (wait) for the bus for half an hour.
You ____ (work) here long?
We ____ (see) this movie before.
Sentence transformation:

Change to present perfect: "I am working on this project for two

months."

Change to present perfect continuous: "They have lived in Canada for

five years."

Change to present perfect: "She is studying Spanish for four years."

Change to present perfect continuous: "He has owned that car for three
years."

Change to present perfect: "We are running a business since 2010."

Error detection:

I have been knowing her since high school.

She has been liking pizza for many years.
They have been owning this house since 1995.
I have been wanting to visit Paris for ages.
He has been understanding the lesson since the beginning.
Lesson 5: Real-world Application

What is something you have been wanting to do for a long time, and
why haven't you done it yet?

Can you describe an accomplishment that you have achieved over

time?

What is something you have been learning recently? How is it

going?

Can you talk about a hobby or interest you have had for many years?

Tell me about a book you have been reading or a show you have
been watching.
Discuss a city or country you have lived in for a long time. How has
your experience been?

Have you been following any sport or team for a long time? What
has the experience been like?

What is something you have been practicing to get better at, and
how is the progress?

Describe a change you have noticed in your life or surroundings over

time.

Have you been working on any personal projects recently? Tell me

about it.