Download Present Progressive Tense

Present Progressive Tense
In English the
present progressive tense
is often used to indicate that something is in
progress or ongoing. If the present tense is used to state “I bathe” it has a slightly
different meaning than if the present progressive tense is used: “I am bathing.” The
understood meaning of the present progressive tense is that the action of the verb is
happening at that point in time. There are other cases in English sentences where the
present progressive tense indicates that the action of the verb is not necessarily
occurring at that exact moment of time, but rather is an ongoing process that is much
like the present tense. For example, “He is studying French” has the same basic meaning
as “He studies French.” But if one asks what he is doing right now it would also be
appropriate to use the present progressive to answer: “He is studying French.”
Spanish use the present progressive similarly. The present progressive tense is also created in Spanish the same
as it is in English. This makes the present progressive tense very easy to learn and understand.
To use a verb in the present progressive tense, you must first conjugate the verb estar to go with the subject.
Then you use the present participle form of the main verb. The present participle in Spanish ends in - ando (for
- ar verbs) or - iendo (for both - er and - ir verbs) and is the equivalent of an English verb ending in -ing. For
example: Juan estudia (John studies) is the present tense. Juan está estudiando (John is studying) is the
present progressive tense.
An - ir verb that stem changes in the present tense will have an e>i or o>u stem in the present participle form.
Here are some examples of -ir verbs:
Infinitive
Present participle
morir (to die)
muriendo (dying)
dormir (to sleep)
durmiendo (sleeping)
decir (to say, to tell)
diciendo (saying, telling)
sentir (to feel, to regret) sintiendo (feeling, regretting)
mentir (to tell a lie)
mintiendo (telling a lie)
pedir (to request)
pidiendo (requesting)
All other verbs that stem change in the present tense will not have any stem change in the present participle
form.
Infinitive
Present participle
cerrar (to close) cerrando (closing)
pensar (to think) pensando (thinking)
jugar (to play)
jugando (playing)
perder (to lose)
perdiendo (losing)
If you want to conjugate a verb in the present progressive tense, you are really only conjugating the verb estar,
and adding the exact same present participle form to each of the different forms of estar. For example, Table 1
shows how the verb trabajar (to work) is conjugated into the present progressive tense.
TABLE 1 Present Progressive Tense of the Verb Trabajar
yo estoy trabajando (I am working)
nosotros/nosotras estamos trabajando (we are working)
tú estás trabajando (you are working)
vosotros/vosotras estáis trabajando (you are working)
él está trabajando (he is working)
ellos
están trabajando (they are working)
ella está trabajando (she is working)
ellas
están trabajando (they are working)
usted está trabajando (you are working) ustedes
están trabajando (you are working)
If you read or hear a Spanish sentence in the present progressive and it doesn't “sound right,” it may be that
English would have used the present tense, so try thinking of the present tense form of the verb that's in its
present participle form and the sentence may be easier for you to understand.