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Then, the present perfect continuous form is often used, if a continuing action is being described. For examples, see Uses of English verb forms § Present perfect as well as the sections of that article relating to the simple past, present perfect continuous, and other perfect forms.
The basic (present) perfect form, with the auxiliary in the present tense, may specifically carry the meaning of perfect aspect, as in English; however in some languages it is used more generally as a past tense (or preterite), as in French and German. The use of auxiliaries and meaning of the constructions in various languages are described below.
The present progressive or present continuous form combines present tense with progressive aspect. It thus refers to an action or event conceived of as having limited duration, taking place at the present time. It consists of a form of the simple present of be together with the present participle of the main verb and the ending -ing.
The progressive (or continuous) aspect is expressed with a form of be together with the present participle of the verb. Thus present progressive (present continuous) constructions take forms like am writing, is writing, are writing, while the past progressive (past continuous, also called imperfect) forms are was writing, were writing.
Present progressive (progressive, not perfect): "I am eating" Present perfect (not progressive, perfect): "I have eaten" Present perfect progressive (progressive, perfect): "I have been eating" (While many elementary discussions of English grammar classify the present perfect as a past tense, it relates the action to the present time.
The aorist participle represents the first event of a two-event sequence and the present participle represents an ongoing event at the time of another event. [25] Perfect verbs stood for past actions if the result is still present (e.g. 'I have found it') or for present states resulting from a past event (e.g. 'I remember').
There are various methods of forming a continuous: One form is the same as in English: zijn (to be) with the present participle, e.g., Het schip is zinkende (The ship is sinking). This form puts stress on the continuous aspect and often gives some dramatic overtone, making it not commonly used. The second method is the most common in Dutch.
A number of multi-word constructions exist to express the combinations of present tense with the basic form of the present tense is called the simple present; there are also constructions known as the present progressive (or present continuous) (e.g. am writing), the present perfect (e.g. have written), and the present perfect progressive (e.g ...