Comprehension Check  Based on the reading, tell if the statement is true (T) or false (F).

1.
Judy Perlman is working as a teacher.
2.
People are living longer these days.
3.
Some people earn money from a job and get a pension at the same time.

2.1  Present Continuous3—Form

For the present continuous, we use a form of be (is, am, are) + verb + –ing.4
Subject Be (am, is, are) Verb + -ing
I am working hard.
Judy is making dolls.
She is getting a pension.
Some seniors are starting second careers.
You are exploring possibilities.

Language Notes:
1. We can make a contraction with the subject pronoun and a form of be. Most nouns can also
contract with is.5
I'm having fun. We're learning new things.
Judy’s making dolls. Frank's working as a carpenter.
2. To form the negative, we put not after am/is/are. In many cases, we can make a negative
contraction in two ways:
She is not working. = She isn’t working. = She’s not working.
You are not relaxing. = You aren’t relaxing. = You’re not relaxing.
3. For I am not, there is only one contraction:
I am not traveling. = I’m not traveling.
4. We do not repeat the be verb after and or or.
Some people are working and getting a pension.
5. We can put an adverb between be and the verb + –ing.
He’s still working.

3 Some grammar books refer to the present continuous as the present progressive.
4 For a review of the spelling of the –ing form of the verb, see Appendix A.
5 See Lesson 1, page 5 for exceptions.

The Present Continuous, The Future 43

CD 1
Exercise 1  Fill in the blanks with the words you hear to complete the conversation between a
TR 11 59-year-old man (A) and the manager of a retirement home (B).

I ’m
A: thinking about moving into this retirement village. Can you give me some information?
1.

B:
Sure. This is a village for people over 55 years old.

A: now. I’m retired. for activities to keep me busy.

2. 3.

B:
Most of the people here are very active. Let me give you a tour. This is our fitness center.

A:
What those people  ?
4. 5.

B: yoga. It’s very popular here. And here’s our pool. As you can see,
6.

some people  .
7.

A:
What about those people in the pool?  .
8.

B: a water aerobics class. Now let’s go to the computer center.

9.

That’s Nicole. She’s the teacher. a photo-editing course.

10.

Marge make a photo album for her grandchildren. And Bob and
11.

Cindy over there travel all over the world. together a Web page
12.

with their ­vacation pictures. Let me show you our game room. As you can see, some people

chess.
13.

A:
What about those women? What game  ?
14.

B:
That’s called MahJongg. It’s especially popular among the women.

A:
I’m a widower. Maybe I can meet a woman here.

B:
That’s possible. We have a singles group that meets once a week. In fact,

right now. I can introduce you to Mary Dodge.

15.

over there. a red T-shirt. She can

16. 17.

give you more information.

Exercise 2  Fill in the blanks with the present continuous form of the verb given. Use the correct
spelling. Make contractions wherever possible.

Jack ’s
1. visiting a retirement village.
visit

2.
He a tour.
take

3.
He at the different activities.
look

44  Lesson 2
 4.
The manager of the village him information.
give

5.
Some people  .
relax

6.
Some people the exercise equipment.
use

7.
One man weights.
lift

8.
Some people in the pool  .
not/swim

9.
Nicole a class. She a class.
not/take teach

10. Some people anything.

not/do

2.2  The Present Continuous—Use

Examples Explanation
Some people are doing yoga over there. We use the present continuous to describe an action in
Those women are playing a game. progress at this moment.
Mary is standing over there. We use the present continuous to describe a state or
She’s wearing a red T-shirt. condition that we can observe now, using the following
verbs: sit, stand, wear, and sleep.
Judy is meeting new people. We use the present continuous to show a long-term action
She is getting her pension and earning that is in progress. It may not be happening at this exact
money from her new job. moment.
More and more retired Americans are We use the present continuous to describe a trend. A trend is
starting a second career. a behavior that many people in society are doing at this time.
People are living longer. It describes a change in behavior from an earlier time.

Exercise 3  Fill in the blanks with the present continuous form of one of the verbs from the box.

retire return work discover start volunteer live spend

1.
More and more older people are working at second careers these days.

2.
Many people at a younger age.

3.
They time doing interesting things.

4.
Some people new careers.

5.
Other people  . They are helping others without pay.

6.
People longer and healthier lives.

7.
Some people new talents and abilities.

8.
Some older women to work after raising a family.

The Present Continuous, The Future 45

 Exercise 4  Are these things happening at this point in time in the United States, in the world, or in
another country you know about? Discuss your ideas with a partner.

1.
People are living healthier lives.

2.
People are living longer.

3.
The world is becoming a safer place.

4.
Medical science is advancing quickly.

5.
A lot of people are losing their jobs.

6.
People are working harder than before.

7.
People are doing more and enjoying less.

8.
Kids are growing up faster than before.

2.3  Questions with the Present Continuous

Compare statements, yes/no questions, short answers, and wh- questions.
Statement Yes/No Question and Short Answer Wh- Question
You are working as a carpenter. Are you working full time? How many hours are you
Yes, I am. working?

They are doing an exercise. Are they doing yoga? What kind of exercise are
No, they’re not. they doing?

Judy isn’t earning a lot of money. Is she earning enough money? Why isn’t Judy earning a
Yes, she is. lot of money?

Language Notes:
1. We sometimes leave a preposition at the end of a question.
What kind of career is he thinking about?
2. When the question is “What . . . doing?” we usually answer with a different verb.
What are they doing? They’re taking an aerobics class.

46  Lesson 2
Exercise 5  Use the words given to make a yes/no question. Fill in the second blank to complete the
short answer.

1.
those/men play

A: Are those men playing checkers?

B:
No, they aren’t  . They’re playing chess.

2.
you/consider

A: this retirement home?

B:
Yes, I  . I’m considering it now that my wife is gone.

3.
Marge/design

A: a website?

B:
Yes, she  . She’s designing a website with pictures of her

vacations.

4.
Marge/take

A: pictures now?

B:
No, she  . She’s putting her pictures on her website.

5.
your wife/do

A: something now?

B:
No,  . She’s just relaxing.

6.
Betty and Charles/take

A:  art classes?

B:
Yes, they  . They love art.

7.
I/ask

A: too many questions?

B:
No,  . You can ask as many questions as you want.

8.
you/write

A: down this information?

B:
No,  . I can check your website later.

The Present Continuous, The Future 47

 Exercise 6  Read each statement. Then write a question using the word(s) given.

1.
Some retirees are discovering new interests. (how)

How
are they discovering new interests?
2.
Judy is having more fun. (why)

3.
Jack is taking piano lessons. (where)

4.
I’m starting a new career. (what kind of career)

5.
Some seniors are studying new things. (what)

6.
My father is thinking about retirement. (why)

7.
Those women are playing a game. (what game)

8.
We’re not planning to retire. (why)

9.
People are living longer nowadays. (why)

10. I’m doing interesting things. (what kinds of things)

11. My father isn’t working now. (why)

48  Lesson 2
Exercise 7  Fill in the blanks with the present continuous to complete the conversation between two
neighbors. Use contractions wherever possible.

A:
What are you doing  , Jack?
1. you/do

B:
I at some brochures.
2. look

A:
What kind of brochures  ?
3.  you/look at

B:
They’re from a retirement village.

A: about moving?
4. you/think

B:
Yes, I am.

A:
Why?

B:
Now that Rose is gone, I feel lonely.

A:
But you have a lot of good neighbors here. And your daughter lives with you.

B:
Most of the neighbors are young. My next-door neighbors are always busy. Right now

they  . And the neighbors across the street are never home.
5. work

A:
They’re older people. too?
6. work

B:
No. They now.
7. travel

A:
But I’m here. I my lawn, as usual. And my wife is inside.
8. water

She on the phone, as usual.

9. talk

B:
I’m sorry I’m complaining so much.

A:
You  . You for
10. not/complain 11. just/look

something to do.

B:
There’s a lot to do. I just don’t want to do things alone.

A:
What retirement village to go to?
12. you/plan

B:
Sun Valley Senior Village seems nice.

A:
What about your daughter?

B:
She to move in with a friend of hers.
13. plan

The Present Continuous, The Future 49