STRUCTURE FOCUS Progressive Tense Prepared by: Varia V. Virdaus, M.A. (source: Hayden, Rebecca E., Pilgrim, Dorothy W., and Haggard, Aurora Q Mastering American English. Singapore: Tuttle Publishing)

THE PROGRESSIVE TENSE What are generally called the progressive tense are verb phrases composed of forms of the auxiliary be + the present participle (-ing form) of the principal verb. The present participle of both regular and irregular verbs is formed by adding ing to the simple form of the verb.

Usage of Present and Past Continuous Present Continuous: by using BE: is, am, are e.g.: I am writing a novel. She is typing a letter. Past Continuous: by using BE: was, were e.g.: She was mopping the floor. They were watching TV while I was cooking.

The following changes in spelling occur when adding ing to the simple form of the verb: 1. A final e that is not pronounced is dropped. write  writing argue  arguing BUT: A final ee is retained. free  freeing agree  agreeing

2. A final consonant letter (except h, w, x, y), preceded by a single vowel letter, is doubled in words of one syllable. beg  begging BUT: fix (ends in x)  fixing greet (two vowel letters before consonant)  greeting

3. A final consonant letter (except h, w, x, y), preceded by a single vowel letter, is doubled in words accented on the last syllable. begin  beginning permit  permitting 4. A few verbs end in ie. The ie in some of these verbs changes to y when the ing ending is added. die  dyingtie  tying or tieing

EXERCISES Giving the present participle of the verb in parentheses: 1. He is (work) his way through college. 2. I am (freeze). 3. It is (begin) to rain. 4. I am (take) zoology this semester. 5. Richard is (write) his second novel. 6. The students are (argue) with the Professor.

7. A car is (stop) in front of the house. 8. Alfred is (fix) the broken chair. 9. The plant is (die) from lack of water. 10. The paper is (lie) on my desk. 11. The children are (play) in the yard. 12. They are (eat) diner now. 13. We are (make) plans for the party. 14. They are (save) money for their vacation. 15. Several people are (sit) in the lobby.

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