Form: present continuous
am / is / are + present participle (verb-ing)
The present continuous (also called the present progressive) is formed with am / is / are (the present tense forms of be) + the present participle -ing form of the verb.
Affirmative
| Subject | Auxiliary | Verb (present participle) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| I | am | sleeping | in the garden. |
| He/She/It | is | ||
| You We You They |
are |
Negative
| Subject | Auxiliary | not | Verb (present participle) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | am | not | sleeping | in the garden. |
| He/She/It | is | |||
| You We You They |
are |
Interrogative
| (Question word) | Auxiliary | Subject | Verb (present participle) |
|---|---|---|---|
| (Where) | am | I | sleeping? |
| is | he/she/it | ||
| are | you we you they |
The following contracted forms are often used in spoken and in informal written language:
I am » I'm
you are » you're
he/she/it is » he's/she's/it's
we are » we're
you are » you're
they are » they're
are not » aren't
is not » isn't
