Present Progressive
Temporary habit or at the moment of speaking
Present vs. Present Progressive
| PERMANENT HABIT | TEMPORARY HABIT | MOMENT OF COMMUNICATION |
|---|---|---|
Present nonprogressive is used for activities that are long-lasting habits. |
Present progressive is used for activities that are temporary or a change from the usual activities. |
Present progressive is used for activities that are occur at the moment of speaking. |
Helen exercises everyday. |
Helen is taking a class at Skyline College this year. |
Helen is jogging around the park right now. |
Helen cooks her own meals often. |
Helen is studying Multimedia Arts this semester. |
Helen is listening to her iPod now. |
Also see At the Moment
Present Tense Adverbs
| PRESENT – MORE PERMANENT | PRESENT PROGRESSIVE – MORE TEMPORARY | ||
|---|---|---|---|
Adverbs for the present tense indicate a more permanent state and tell howoften an activity occurs or is repeated. Adverbs are rarely used with present tense statements: "general truths" or "states of being" . |
Adverbs for the present progressive emphasize the moment of speaking as the time of the activity. The adverb may also indicate a temporary change. With a larger range of time, this month, the focus is still on the present time period not any amount of time that has passed. |
||
GENERAL TRUTH general truth (Adverbs are rarely used.) |
FREQUENCY always / routinely / customarily |
NOW at the moment |
THIS ... today |
|
most of the time / usually / normally |
for now |
tonight |
EVERY ... |
in general / often / as a rule |
just now |
this morning |
every day (night, week, month, year, etc.) |
half of the time / frequently |
for a little while |
this week |
each day (night, week, month, year, etc.) |
occasionally / sometimes |
currently |
this month |
every other day (night, week, year, etc.) |
rarely / seldom / hardly ever |
presently |
this semester |
most weekends (nights, weeks, months, etc.) |
never |
as we speak |
this year |
Also see Adverbs of Time
Sentence Structure
Diagrams
Traditional vs. Modern Sentence Diagramming
| TRADITIONAL SYSTEM | CURRENT LINGUISTIC SYSTEM |
|---|---|
In traditional grammar, auxiliary verbs (linking verbs) are treated as auxiliary combinations with other verbs (verb groups). Verbs are grouped. Aux Verb Diagrams |
In current linguistic analysis, auxiliaries are main verbs followed by gerund-participle or past participle verb forms in subordinated nonfinite clauses. In this example, the auxilary is followed by a gerund participle. (CaGEL 104,1218) Also see Secondary Verbs (nonfinite). Click the tree to see a more detailed tree. |
|
|
Clause; Subject / Predicate; Finite / Nonfinite; NP –noun phrase; N – noun; VP – verb phrase; V – verb; Comp – complement; Det – determiner; PP – prepositional phrase; P – preposition; Sub – Subordinator
Also see Reed-Kellogg diagram.
Resources
Practice
Changes in Habits
- Select the tense from the menu that best completes the sentence. Pay attention to adverbs.
- Then compare your responses to the answers by clicking the "check" button.
Paragraph 1
compete (v.) - take part in a sports competion An athlete competes to win.
Paragraph 2
skip (v.) - to not do a usual habit or activity.
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 4
Related page: Stative Verbs – verbs that do not take the progressive tense
Paragraph 5
Practice 2
- Select the tense from the menu that best completes the sentence. Pay attention to adverbs.
- Then compare your responses to the answers by clicking the "check" button.
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 7
Related page: Time-Related Events – until
Alternate Text View of Answers
Text View for Practice 1
Usually, Greg eats anything he wants and doesn't worry about what it does to his body. However, now, he is competing in swimming and has to change his eating habits.
Usually, he gets up and has orange juice or just skips breakfast because he is late for class. Then at lunch, he frequently meets his friends at Mac Donald's and has a Big Mac, fries and a cola.
At dinner time, he always sits down with his family, and enjoys a big meal. His mom usually serves meat, vegetables and potatoes. After that, he eats a green salad or some fruit. Most of the time, by eleven o'clock, he is hungry again, so he has ice cream and cookies.
Now, he is swimming competitively and his diet is completely different. In the morning, he is eating a lot more protein, eggs and bacon, and a couple pieces of whole wheat toast, so that he has more energy for his morning work-out. He is spending noon time with his swimming teammates, not his "junk food" friends. He is following a low-fat, high-protein diet.
Now, at dinner, he is taking an extra helping of meat and potatoes. In fact, his mom is having trouble keeping enough food in the refrigerator. She thinks that he is an eating-machine. Next, week Greg is going/goes to Washington State for the National Swimming Championships. He is excited about them, but he knows that it may take a while until he wins a big competition.
Text View for Practice 2
This month, Marcial is having difficulty becausehis companylaid off several employees, including Marcial! Usually, he works at Micro Systems where he is a circuit designer. However, the company has to make budget cuts and they can't afford to keep all of the employees.
Losing his job is upsetting for Marcial. Usually, he gets up at 6:00, has breakfast and leaves for work. However, this morning, Marcial is searching the job sites on the Internet. He also is feeling a bit depressed. He knows it will take time to find another position because he is a highly-trained specialist. His company isn't unsympathetic; they are assisting him in his job search. Meanwhile, Marcial is cutting back on his spending habits until he finds a job.