Grammatica > Verbi > Il presente
Present continuous - Present progressive Presente progressivo | |||||
Affermativa | Negativa | Interrogativa | Interrogativa -Negativa | ||
Non contratta | Contratta | Non contratta | Contratta | ||
I am cooking | I'm cooking | I am not cooking | I'm not cooking | Am I cooking? | Aren't I cooking? |
You are cooking | You're cooking | You are not cooking | You're not cooking | Are you cooking? | Aren't you cooking? |
He is cooking | He's cooking | He is not cooking | He's not cooking | Is he cooking? | Isn't he cooking? |
She is cooking | She's cooking | She is not cooking | She's not cooking | Is she cooking? | Isn't she cooking? |
It is cooking | It's cooking | It is not cooking | It's not cooking | Is it cooking? | Isn't Iit cooking? |
We are cooking | We're cooking | We are not cooking | We're not cooking | Are we cooking? | Aren't we cooking? |
You are cooking | You're cooking | You are not cooking | You're not cooking | Are you cooking? | Aren't you cooking? |
They are cooking | They're cooking | They are not cooking | They're not cooking | Are they cooking? | Aren't they cooking? |
Short answer negativa No, I'm not No, you/we/you/they aren't No, he/she/it isn't |
Short answer affermativa (mai contratta) No, I am No, you/we/you/they are No, he/she/it is |
Il present continuous o present progressive (presente progressivo) è solitamente usato in inglese:
Per parlare di azioni che avvengono nel momento in cui si parla (o si scrive) → The plane is landing
Per parlare di cose che avvengono in questo periodo anche se non proprio nel momento in cui si parla (o si scrive), ma che sono in qualche modo diverse dalle azioni solite dalle normali abitudini
What are you doing these days? I'm working with my mother.
Per descrivere figure e fotografie → Look! In this photo Mary's dancing with Paul
Per parlare di cambiamenti e orientamenti. → These days, a lot of people are going to Mario's
Il present continuous è spesso accompagnato da espressioni temporali che indicano il tempo presente o il periodo attuale. Eccone alcune:
Now (adesso, ora) She is reading a book now. He is cooking dinner right now.
At the moment (al momento) They are watching TV at the moment. I am working on a project at the moment.
Currently (attualmente) She is currently studying for her exams. He is currently working from home.
Right now (proprio adesso) We are having dinner right now. You are listening to music right now.
These days (in questi giorni) They are traveling a lot these days. I am learning French these days.
Nowadays (oggigiorno, al giorno d’oggi) People are using social media a lot nowadays. He is eating healthier nowadays.
This week/month/year (questa settimana/mese/anno)
She is working extra hours this week. We are visiting our grandparents this month. He is taking a break from work this year.
Today (oggi) I am meeting my friend today. They are shopping for groceries today.
Per esprimere fastidio e irritazione per qualcosa che avviene molto frequentemente. In questo caso è accompagnato sempre da always
John is always going to Mary's
Nota bene
Il present continuous/progressive non si può usare con tutti i verbi ma soltanto con i verbi di azione, non con i verbi di stato (state verbs).
Il present continuous è formato dal presente del verbo to be seguito dalla forma in -ing del verbo principale.
Per fare la forma in -ing basta aggiungere la desinenza -ING alla forma base del verbo:
cook + ing = cooking go + ing = going
Però spesso l'aggiunta della desinenza -ing alla forma base del verbo comporta alcune modificazioni ortografiche.
1. Raddoppio della consonante finale:
Verbi monosillabici che terminano con una sola consonante preceduta da una sola vocale:
run → running He is running fast to catch the bus.
sit → sitting She is sitting in the front row.
Nota bene!!!
peel → peeling (due vocali prima della consonante finale) "They are peeling potatoes."
paint → painting (due consonanti finali) "They are painting their kitchen."
Non raddoppia con i verbi che terminano in -w, e -x
Saw → sawing I am sawing the wood for our new deck. Fix → fixing She is fixing her bike.
Verbi bisillabici con accento sulla seconda sillaba, che terminano con una sola consonante preceduta da una sola vocale:
admit → admitting He is admitting his mistake.
permit → permitting They are permitting the use of mobile phones in the meeting.
begin → beginning The concert is beginning right now.
Attenzione
suffer → suffering (accento sulla prima sillaba) He is suffering from a headache.
repeat → repeating (due vocali prima della consonante finale) She is repeating the instructions.
report → reporting (due consonanti finali) They are reporting the weather forecast.
2. Verbi che terminano in -L preceduta da una sola vocale (solo nell'inglese britannico):
travel → travelling (US: traveling) They are travelling to Spain this summer.
cancel → cancelling (US: canceling) She is cancelling her appointment.
label → labelling (US: labeling) He is labelling the boxes for storage.
model → modelling (US: modeling) She is modelling for a fashion show.
signal → signalling (US: signaling) The driver is signalling to turn left.
Attenzione
feel → feeling (due vocali prima della consonante finale) He is feeling much better now.
Però i verbi dial e fuel, dove la -L è preceduta due due vocali si raddoppia comunque la - L (sempre nell'inglese britannico)
Dial → dialling She is dialling her friend's number to catch up after a long time.
Fuel → fuelling They are fuelling their car before the long road trip.
3. Eliminazione della -e nei verbi che terminano in -e muta:
come → coming She is coming to the party tonight.
leave → leaving (la -e non viene pronunciata) They are leaving for vacation tomorrow.
Attenzione:
see → seeing (la -e viene pronunciata) He is seeing the doctor today.
be → being (la -e viene pronunciata) She is being very kind.
4. Il dittongo finale -ie si trasforma in y:
lie → lying He is lying on the couch.
die → dying The plant is dying without water.
5. La -y finale non si modifica quando si aggiunge -ing:
cry → crying The baby is crying loudly.
study → studying She is studying for her exams.
buy → buying They are buying groceries.
stay → staying He is staying at a hotel.
6. I verbi che terminano in - c si aggiunge -k prima di aggiungere - ing
Traffic → trafficking He is trafficking goods across the border legally as part of his business operations.
Picnic → picnicking We are picnicking by the lake this weekend, hoping for sunny weather.