Perfect Continuous Tenses
The perfect continuous tenses are used to express actions or states that started in the past,
continued for a specific timeframe, may continue in the present or may continue into the future.
These tenses emphasize the duration or ongoing nature of the action or state being described.
Present Perfect Continuous Tense
Use: It is used for actions that began at some time in the past and are still continuing.
Structure: Subject+ has been/have been+ verb-ing+ remaining sentence
Examples:
1. We have been living in Mumbai for 20 years. (and are still living)
2. We have been living in Mumbai since 2001.
3. I have been waiting for her in the mall for 1 hour. (and am still waiting).
4. He has been waiting for her in the restaurant since 8 pm.
5. The child has been sleeping for 10 hours.
6. The children have been playing since morning.
7. Ravi has been wandering since morning.
8. The students haven’t been trying to learn the new words.
9. Neha has not been sleeping well for the past one month.
10. Haven’t they been building the bridge for several months?
11. What has he been doing lately?
NOTE: USE OF SINCE, FOR AND FROM
Since is used when we mention a point of time in the past. (see sentences above)
For is used when we mention a period of time. (see sentences above)
From is used:
i) When we mention a point of time in the future.
E.g. I will start working from tomorrow.
They will begin their journey from the next month.
ii) In the conjunction: ‘from…… till’.
E.g. They work from morning till night.
We partied from dusk till dawn.
The course is from April 1st to/till 30 th June
Note: These sentences are not in the present perfect continuous tense. Similarly, the sentences
using ‘for’ and ‘since’ may be in other tenses as well.
Past Perfect Continuous Tense
Use: The past perfect continuous tense is used for an action that began before a certain point in the
past and continued up to that time.
Structure: Subject+ had been+ verb-ing+ remaining sentence.
1. At that time, he had been writing a novel for 2 years.
2. When Mr. Gupta came to the school in 2001, Mr. Sharma had already been teaching there for ten years.
3. When Mr. Amit Shah joined the cabinet as the home minister, Mr. Rajnath Singh had been working in that capacity for five years.
4. Vidya Balan had been struggling for four years before she got her first hit film.
5. I had been walking for an hour when it suddenly started to rain.
6. The players had been practising for four years when the Olympics was cancelled due to the
pandemic.
7. I had already been studying for the entire year when the exams were postponed.
8. He had been managing alone for 20 years when he married.
9. We had been burning firecrackers on Diwali for decades before it was banned as it causes air pollution.
10. He had been enduring severe pain for 4 years when he finally gave up.
Future Perfect Continuous Tense
Use: The future perfect continuous tense is used for actions which will be in progress over a period of time that will end in the future.
Structure: Subject+ will have been+ verb-ing+ remaining sentence
1. By next March we will have been living here for ten years.
2. I’ll have been teaching for thirty years next July.
This tense is not very common.