Happening Right Now
Present Continuous
To express what is happening at the present moment in time use the present continuous. The present continuous is also sometimes referred to as the present progressive.
They are installing a new control panel into the system this week.
When are you modifying the status bar?
Alice isn't configuring the data at the moment.
Another use of the present continuous is to express what is happening around the current period of time. This is often used in work settings when discussing a project that is currently in progress.
He is working on a spam filter this week.
Positive Form:
Subject + to be + verb + ing + (object(s))
She's discussing how to compress the files with the IT guy at the moment.
Negative Form:
Subject + to be + not + verb + ing + (object(s))
Alice isn't configuring the data at the moment.
Question Form:
(Wh-) + to be + verb + ing?
What is this software doing on your system?
NOTE: Common time expressions used with the present continuous include:
at the moment
currently
this week
today
now
Example:
Harold is working on a copyleft program this month.
Shelly is hoping to crash the system today.
I am developing a new spyware program this quarter.
Stative Verbs
Stative verbs express a state. Action verbs express an action, or task that someone performs.
Stative are never used in continuous forms. Here is a list of common stative verbs:
believe
understand
think (opinion)
want
hope
smell
taste
feel
sound
look
seem
appear
Example:
The folder tastes like cardboard because it is cardboard.
The font looks illegible.
She feels overwhelmed by bleeding edge technologies today.