B. Negative Form Subject have/has +
not
been verb + ing Complement I
You We They Students Azhar and Ana
have not (haven’t)
been studying here
for one
hour/
since one o’clock He
She Student Akbar It
has not (hasn’t)
C. Question Form
How long Have/has Subject Been Verb + ing
How long have
I you we they students Azhar and Ana he
she student Akbar it
been
studying here?
How long has
C. Illustration of Present Perfect Continuous Tense
Atun and Atin have been in a night-club since 8 p.m. It is 2 in the morning now. They have been having a very good time. "I really think we had better leave now" Atin is telling Atun. "Everybody else has gone home except the waiter and the band."
1. Ask and answer the question!
a) Where/now b) How long
c) What time/now d) a good time
2. What is Atin telling Atun?
3. Do you agree? Why?
Julia is going to meet her boyfriend. She has been waiting for the bus for some time but it has not come yet. She is going to be late again if it does not come soon. A taxi has just come round the corner.
Perhaps she had better take it.
1. What is Julia going to do?
2. What is she doing now? Ask 'how long'!
3. What is going to happen if the bus does not come soon?
4. What has just happened?
5. What had she better do?
Peter came back to England a month ago. He has been staying with Tom and Susan since then. He has been looking for a job for a month but has not found one yet. "Some employers don't like people with long hair," Tom is telling him. "Perhaps you'd better get a haircut!"
1. Ask and answer questions about Peter!
a) When/back to England
b) How long/with Tom and Susan c) How long/ a job
d) One yet
2. What is Tom telling him?
Fandi has not been feeling very well lately. He has been working a lot of overtime because he wants to buy a new car. The doctor has been examining him. "You've been working too hard, that's all," he is saying. "you'd better not work so hard."
1. What has the doctor been doing?
2. What had Fandi better do and why?
3. Ask and answer the questions!
a) Very well lately
b) Why/so much overtime lately.9 D. Use of Present Perfect Continuous Tense
The Present Perfect Continuous expresses in duration (the length of time) of an activity that is in progress. Time expressions with since or for are usually used with the present perfect continuous tense. Examples:
- I have been sitting in class since 9 o'clock.
- They have been reading those books for 45 minutes.
- He has been watching television since nine o'clock this morning.
- It has been raining all day. It still raining right now.
- You have been studying for five straight hours. Why don't you take a break?
- Right now, I am sitting at my desk; I have been sitting here since seven o'clock.
- Where have you been? I have been looking for you for the last half hour.
- Akbar is very good pingpong player. He has been playing since he was ten year old.
- I have been studying at UIN Mataram since 2019.
- I have been a student of UIN Mataram since 2019.
- Tina is still watching TV. She has been watching TV all day.
9Robert O’Neill, Roy Kingsbury, Tony Yeadon. Kernel Lessons Intermediate:
Students’ Book Part A, (Yogyakarta: Kanisius, 1984), 69.
We use the Present Perfect Continuous when we talk about an action (quite a long action) which begin in the past and has recently stopped or just stopped. Examples:
- You're out of break. Have you been running?
- That man over there is bright red. I think he's been sunbathing.
- Why are your clothes so dirty? What have you been doing?
- I have been talking to Tom about your problem and he thinks … We also use the Present Perfect Continuous to ask or say how long something has been happening. This time the action or situation begins in the past and is still happening or has just stopped. Examples:
- It is raining now. It begins to rain two hours ago and it is still raining.
- How long have you been learning English?
- They've been waiting here for over an hour.
- I've been watching television since 2 o'clock.
- Anita hasn't been feeling very well recently.
- Have you been working hard today?
- How long have you been smoking?
- What have you been doing?
- How long have you been a student of UIN Mataram?
- How long has it been raining?
E. Practice
a. Read the first sentence. Change the verb from the first sentence to present perfect continuous tense in the second sentence.
Example: She is studying grammar now. She has been studying grammar for two hours.
1. The boys are playing tennis right now. The boys ……since noon.
2. Yud is reading a book now. Yud ……a book since last.
3. Our class is studying the history of Greece. Our class ……… the history of Greece for two weeks.
4. That cat is making a lot of noise. That cat ……a lot of noise for more than an hour.
5. Mice and Mesi are writing letters. Mice and Mesi ….. letters every day this week.
6. Jane is talking to her mother. Jane ………to her mother for a long time now.
7. We aren't studying now. We ……… this semester.
8. My television is working very well. My television ………
very well since I bought it.
9. Somebody is knocking on the door. Somebody ………on the door for two minutes.
10. Children are playing football. Children ………since this morning in front of the house.
b. Answer the following questions by using ‘since’ or ‘for’ in your answer.
1. How long have you been sitting in class?
2. How long have you been studying English?
3. How long have you been living in Mataram?
4. Who lives in an apartment/ a dormitory? How long have you been living there?
5. I am standing up/ sitting down. How long have I been standing up/ sitting down?
6. I began to work at this school in (month or year). How long have I been working here?
7. We're doing an exercise. How long have we been doing this exercise?
8. Who drives? How long have you been driving?
9. Who drinks coffee? How old were you when you started to drink coffee? How long have you been drinking coffee?
10. Who smokes? When did you start? How long have you been smoking?