Formation of present continuous:
Structure
| Positive | be + verb + ing | He is working today. |
| Negative | be + not + verb + ing | He is not (isn't) working today. |
| Questions | be + subject + verb + ing question word + be + subject + verb + ing | Is he working today? Where is he working today? |
Verb 'to be': long forms and short forms
| Affirmative | I am – I'm | he is – he's she is – she's it is – it's | we are – we're they are – they're you are – you're |
| Negative | I am not – I'm not | he is not – he isn't / he's not she is not – she isn't / she's not it is not – it isn't / it's not | we are not – we aren't / we're not they are not – they aren't / they're not you are not – you aren't / you're not |
Formation of the present participle (often called 'the -ing' or 'continuous form')
| adding -ing to the bare infinitive: | work – working | |
Consonant after a short, stressed vowel at the end of the word If the consonant is not stressed | double the consonant: do not double it: | sit – sitting benefit – benefiting |
| In British English | double one -l at the end of the word: | travel – travelling |
One -e at the end of the word Double -e | leave out the -e: add -ing: | write – writing see – seeing |
| Verbs ending in -ie | change 'ie' to 'y': | lie – lying |
| Verbs ending in -c | change 'c' to 'ck': | picnic – picnicking |
Signal words: 'at the moment', 'now', 'today', 'this week', 'this month', 'tomorrow', 'next week' (for future arrangements ), 'currently'.