Grammar › Present Continuous

Present Continuous: yes/no questions

830 fill-in-the-gap exercises, 83 tests of ten

Move be in front of the subject. The -ing form stays where it is.

Practice this form

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Getting your first question ready.

The pattern

Swap the first two elements of the statement:

You are listening. → Are you listening?

The -ing form does not move and does not change.

Short answers use be

Is he working? — Yes, he is. / No, he isn’t.

Repeating the whole phrase — Yes, he is working — is correct but sounds heavy.

Asking about arrangements

Because the tense covers fixed plans, many of its questions are about the near future:

The answer names a time, not an intention: Yes, at three.

Which auxiliary does this sentence need

Look at the main verb. If it ends in -ing, the question takes be. If it is a plain verb, the question takes do or does:

All forms

SubjectQuestionShort answer, yesShort answer, no
IAm I interrupting?Yes, you are.No, you aren't.
you, we, theyAre they waiting?Yes, they are.No, they aren't.
he, she, itIs she coming?Yes, she is.No, she isn't.

Examples

Taken from the 830 sentences in this drill. The answer is highlighted.

Mistakes to avoid

Wrong: Does she coming? correct: Is she coming?

The auxiliary is be. Does belongs to the Present Simple.

Wrong: Are you going to the party tomorrow? Yes, I'm. correct: Yes, I am.

A short answer cannot end on a contraction.

Quick choices from this form

Is or are? 3,677 sentences, 367 tests of ten

Other forms of Present Continuous

Positive Statements in Present Continuous Tense 450 sentences, 45 tests of ten Negative Statements in Present Continuous Tense 450 sentences, 45 tests of ten Questions in Present Continuous Tense 830 sentences, 83 tests of ten WH-Questions in Present Continuous Tense 450 sentences, 45 tests of ten
Mixed practice → Done with this form? Try it among all the others — ten, twenty or thirty sentences from every form at once.