Present | Past | Perfect Progressive
Choose the Correct Progressive Tense
Present Progressive → use it for something happening now or around now.
Example: She is working at the moment.
Past Progressive → use it for something that was in progress at a specific time in the past.
Example: She was working at 8 o’clock last night.
Present Perfect Progressive → use it for something that started in the past and is still continuing or has just stopped with a visible result.
Example: She has been working all morning.
Look for time words and keywords:
present progressive: now, at the moment, right now, today, currently
past progressive: at 7 yesterday, while, when, all evening, at that time
present perfect progressive: for, since, all day, recently, lately
[Das Present Progressive benutzt man für etwas, das gerade jetzt oder im Moment passiert.
Beispiel: She is working at the moment.
Das Past Progressive benutzt man für etwas, das zu einem bestimmten Zeitpunkt in der Vergangenheit gerade im Gange war.
Beispiel: She was working at 8 o’clock last night.
Das Present Perfect Progressive benutzt man für etwas, das in der Vergangenheit begonnen hat und noch andauert oder gerade aufgehört hat und ein sichtbares Resultat hat.
Beispiel: She has been working all morning.
Achte auf Signalwörter wie now, at the moment oder currently für das Present Progressive, auf while, when oder at 7 yesterday für das Past Progressive und auf for, since, all day, recently oder lately für das Present Perfect Progressive.]
Examples
1. She _____ on the phone right now. (right now)
[Sie telefoniert gerade jetzt.]
Correct answer: is talking
2. She _____ on the phone when I arrived. (when I arrived)
[Sie telefonierte gerade, als ich ankam.]
Correct answer: was talking
3. She _____ on the phone for an hour. (for an hour)
[Sie telefoniert seit einer Stunde.]
Correct answer: has been talking
4. They _____ all morning, so they need a break. (all morning)
[Sie arbeiten schon den ganzen Morgen, deshalb brauchen sie eine Pause.]
Correct answer: have been working
Scenario: Choose the correct answer.
1. She _____ on a new project at the moment. (at the moment)
is working
[Sie arbeitet im Moment an einem neuen Projekt.]
a) is working
b) was working
2. We _____ dinner when the lights went out. (when)
were having
[Wir aßen gerade zu Abend, als das Licht ausging.]
a) are having
b) were having
3. I _____ for this company since January. (since January)
have been working
[Ich arbeite seit Januar für diese Firma.]
a) have been working
b) am working
4. He _____ to his manager right now. (right now)
is speaking
[Er spricht gerade mit seinem Chef.]
a) has been speaking
b) is speaking
5. They _____ all evening when I called them. (all evening, when)
were studying
[Sie lernten schon den ganzen Abend, als ich sie anrief.]
a) were studying
b) have been studying
6. She _____ the report for two hours. (for two hours)
has been writing
[Sie schreibt seit zwei Stunden an dem Bericht.]
a) was writing
b) has been writing
7. I _____ for the bus now. (now)
am waiting
[Ich warte jetzt auf den Bus.]
a) am waiting
b) was waiting
8. He _____ when the teacher asked him a question. (when)
was sleeping
[Er schlief gerade, als der Lehrer ihm eine Frage stellte.]
a) is sleeping
b) was sleeping
9. We _____ the house all day. (all day)
have been cleaning
[Wir putzen das Haus schon den ganzen Tag.]
a) have been cleaning
b) are cleaning
10. She _____ lunch at the moment. (at the moment)
is making
[Sie macht im Moment das Mittagessen.]
a) is making
b) has been making
11. They _____ football when it started to rain. (when)
were playing
[Sie spielten gerade Fußball, als es anfing zu regnen.]
a) are playing
b) were playing
12. I _____ English recently because I need it for work. (recently)
have been learning
[Ich lerne in letzter Zeit Englisch, weil ich es für die Arbeit brauche.]
a) am learning
b) have been learning
13. He _____ in the garden now. (now)
is sitting
[Er sitzt jetzt im Garten.]
a) was sitting
b) is sitting
14. We _____ along the beach at 6 yesterday evening. (at 6 yesterday evening)
were walking
[Wir gingen gestern Abend um 6 Uhr gerade am Strand spazieren.]
a) were walking
b) have been walking
15. She _____ too hard lately and needs a holiday. (lately)
has been working
[Sie hat in letzter Zeit zu viel gearbeitet und braucht Urlaub.]
a) has been working
b) is working
16. They _____ in the kitchen right now. (right now)
are talking
[Sie reden gerade in der Küche.]
a) were talking
b) are talking
17. I _____ when you sent me that message. (when)
was driving
[Ich fuhr gerade, als du mir diese Nachricht geschickt hast.]
a) was driving
b) am driving
18. He _____ for over an hour, so he is tired. (for over an hour)
has been running
[Er läuft seit über einer Stunde, deshalb ist er müde.]
a) was running
b) has been running
19. We _____ a film at the moment. (at the moment)
are watching
[Wir schauen im Moment einen Film.]
a) are watching
b) were watching
20. She _____ while the others were working. (while)
was relaxing
[Sie entspannte sich gerade, während die anderen arbeiteten.]
a) is relaxing
b) was relaxing
21. They _____ the same problem since last week. (since last week)
have been discussing
[Sie besprechen dasselbe Problem seit letzter Woche.]
a) have been discussing
b) are discussing
22. I _____ to my friend now. (now)
am writing
[Ich schreibe jetzt meinem Freund.]
a) am writing
b) have been writing
23. He _____ at his desk when the fire alarm rang. (when)
was sitting
[Er saß gerade an seinem Schreibtisch, als der Feueralarm klingelte.]
a) was sitting
b) is sitting
24. We _____ for the guests since noon. (since noon)
have been preparing
[Wir bereiten seit Mittag alles für die Gäste vor.]
a) were preparing
b) have been preparing
25. The children _____ in the living room at the moment. (at the moment)
are playing
[Die Kinder spielen im Moment im Wohnzimmer.]
a) were playing
b) are playing