ref –
- https://www.grammarly.com/blog/present-continuous/
- https://byjus.com/english/continuous-tense-examples/
- https://www.natterandramble.co.uk/present-continuous-timeline-form-uses/
The present continuous verb tense indicates that an action or condition is happening now, frequently, and may continue into the future.
Use the present continuous to show an action happening right now or in the near future.
The Present Continuous Formula:
to be [am, is, are] + action verb [present participle]
Aunt Christine is warming up the car while Scott is looking for his new leather coat.
They are eating at Scott’s favorite restaurant today, Polly’s Pancake Diner.
I am reading The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy for the fifth time!
We are eating pizza tonight.
She is going out tonight.
It shows the event unfolded…showing the action as it is happening:
They are sitting at Scott’s favorite booth, the one with the sparkling red plastic seats. (For how long? We don’t know, but we do know they are sitting there now.)
The waiter is standing behind the counter right now with a notepad in his hand and pencil behind his ear. (Will he ever make it over to the booth? Probably, but not now.)
“Are you waiting to open your presents after you eat your pancakes?” said Aunt Christine, taking a sip from her root beer. (Here the present continuous is being used in question form.)
Writers use this tense to add suspense or humor in fictional pieces. What kind of pancakes will Scott and his aunt order? The suspense is killing me!
Do not use the present continuous tense with stative verbs
ref – https://chineseruleof8.com/2023/05/26/stative-verbs/
Stative verbs show a state of being, not qualities of change. These verbs can stay in the simple present. For example, let’s take a look at the stative word prefer. We try to use it in continuous form using preferring.
Aunt Christine is prefering the maple walnut pancakes over the banana peanut butter ones that Scott loves.
WRONG!
We can only use it at a stative verb in a simple present form:
Aunt Christine prefers the maple walnut pancakes over the banana peanut butter ones that Scott loves.
Thus, the stative verb to prefer shows opinion, and therefore SHOULD NOT be conjugated with the present continuous.