Present Continuous Tense – English Grammar Exercises for A1
You are catching up with an old friend at a coffee shop. You are talking about temporary habits, hobbies, or situations that you are doing these days (this week, this month).
Choose the correct option to complete each sentence.
1 Boss: “What are you doing?”
You: “I ______ an email to the client.”
(a) writing
(b) am writing
(c) write
2 We ______ the new instructions for the project right now.
(a) read
(b) is reading
(c) are reading
3 Shh! Please be quiet. He ______ a very important report.
(a) reads
(b) is reading
(c) reading
4 Look at Sarah. She ______ a new customer at the front desk.
(a) is helping
(b) am helping
(c) helps
5 They ______ the broken printer in the corner.
(a) is fixing
(b) are fixing
(c) fix
6 Right now, I ______ all the old files into the trash bin.
(a) am puting
(b) put
(c) am putting
7 Boss: “What is your team doing?”
You: “We ______ a presentation for the afternoon meeting.”
(a) are making
(b) are makeing
(c) make
8 I ______ games on my phone! I am researching information for my homework.
(a) don’t play
(b) not playing
(c) am not playing
9 Excuse me, what ______ right now? I need your help with this box.
(a) you are doing
(b) are you doing
(c) do you do
10 Boss: “Are you writing the daily report?”
You: “Yes, I ______.”
(a) do
(b) are
(c) am
11 I usually take a lunch break at 12:00, but today I ______ late to finish this task.
(a) am working
(b) working
(c) work
12 Please wait a moment. I ______ the data from the USB drive.
(a) copy
(b) am copying
(c) am copiing
13 You cannot talk to the manager right now. She ______ on the phone with a VIP client.
(a) talks
(b) are talking
(c) is talking
14 The students ______ the internet right now. They are reading their textbooks instead.
(a) isn’t using
(b) aren’t using
(c) don’t use
15 I am typing the email, and John ______ the financial numbers.
(a) checking
(b) is checking
(c) checks
16 The office is very quiet today. Everyone ______ hard on their computers.
(a) are working
(b) works
(c) is working
17 Boss: “Who ______ the presentation right now?”
You: “Sarah is.”
(a) is giving
(b) are giving
(c) gives
18 Look at the computer screen! The software ______ an update right now.
(a) downloads
(b) is downloading
(c) are downloading
19 I am sorry, but nobody ______ to you because we are all wearing headphones.
(a) are listening
(b) listens
(c) is listening
20 “______ Mr. Smith ______ the new employees in the meeting room?”
“Yes, he is.”
(a) Does / train
(b) Are / training
(c) Is / training
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (b) am writing
- Why it’s correct: The subject “I” takes “am” + V-ing. You are doing this task right now.
- Why the others are wrong: (c) uses the Present Simple, which is a common mistake for learners reporting a current action. (a) is a basic error because it is missing the “be” verb (am).
2 (c) are reading
- Why it’s correct: “We” is plural, so we use “are” + V-ing.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is Present Simple. (b) uses “is,” which is only for singular subjects.
3 (b) is reading
- Why it’s correct: “He” takes “is” + V-ing to show he is focused on the report at this exact moment.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is Present Simple. (c) misses the auxiliary verb “is”.
4 (a) is helping
- Why it’s correct: “She” takes “is” + V-ing. The phrase “Look at Sarah” tells us the action is happening right now.
- Why the others are wrong: (c) is Present Simple. (b) incorrectly uses “am,” which is only for “I”.
5 (b) are fixing
- Why it’s correct: “They” is plural and takes “are” + V-ing.
- Why the others are wrong: (c) is Present Simple. (a) uses the singular verb “is”.
6 (c) am putting
- Why it’s correct: “Put” is a short, one-syllable word ending in Consonant-Vowel-Consonant (CVC). You must double the final consonant (putting).
- Why the others are wrong: (b) is Present Simple. (a) is a spelling error because it forgets to double the “t”.
7 (a) are making
- Why it’s correct: “We” takes “are”. When a verb ends in a silent “e” (make), you drop the “e” before adding “-ing” (making).
- Why the others are wrong: (c) is Present Simple. (b) is a spelling error (makeing).
8 (c) am not playing
- Why it’s correct: This is a negative sentence. The structure is “I” + am + not + V-ing. You are clarifying what you are not doing.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is the Present Simple negative (don’t play). (b) is missing the “am”.
9 (b) are you doing
- Why it’s correct: For a WH-question, the word order is: WH-word + be + subject + V-ing (What + are + you + doing).
- Why the others are wrong: (c) asks about a general routine (Present Simple). (a) uses statement word order instead of question word order.
10 (c) am
- Why it’s correct: In short answers for the Present Continuous (“Are you…?”), we reply with “Yes, I am.”
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is used to answer Present Simple questions (“Do you…?”). (b) is grammatically incorrect for the pronoun “I”.
11 (a) am working
- Why it’s correct: You are contrasting your usual routine (Present Simple: “take a break”) with your current, ongoing task today (Present Continuous: “am working”).
- Why the others are wrong: (c) is Present Simple. (b) is missing the “be” verb.
12 (b) am copying
- Why it’s correct: Verbs ending in “y” just take “-ing” directly (copy -> copying).
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is Present Simple. (c) changes the “y” to “i”, which is a spelling rule for Present Simple (copies), but NOT for Present Continuous.
13 (c) is talking
- Why it’s correct: “She” takes “is” + V-ing. This shows she is busy doing this right now.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is Present Simple. (b) uses the plural “are”.
14 (b) aren’t using
- Why it’s correct: “The students” is plural, so the negative is “are not” (aren’t) + V-ing.
- Why the others are wrong: (c) is Present Simple. (a) uses the singular “isn’t”.
15 (b) is checking
- Why it’s correct: John is a singular third-person subject (“he”), so we use “is” + V-ing. This reports his current task.
- Why the others are wrong: (c) is Present Simple. (a) is missing the “be” verb.
16 (c) is working
- Why it’s correct: Pronouns like “Everyone” or “Everybody” always take a singular verb (“is”), even though they mean many people.
- Why the others are wrong: (b) is Present Simple. (a) uses “are”, which is a very common mistake for learners who think “everyone” is grammatically plural.
17 (a) is giving
- Why it’s correct: “Who” acts as a singular subject here, asking about the person currently performing the task. Give drops the “e” to become giving.
- Why the others are wrong: (c) is Present Simple. (b) uses the plural “are”.
18 (b) is downloading
- Why it’s correct: “The software” (it) is singular and takes “is” + V-ing. The word “Look!” tells us to observe an action happening right now.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is Present Simple. (c) uses the plural “are”.
19 (c) is listening
- Why it’s correct: Just like “everyone”, the word “nobody” takes a singular verb (“is”).
- Why the others are wrong: (b) is Present Simple. (a) uses the plural “are”.
20 (c) Is / training
- Why it’s correct: This is a Yes/No question about Mr. Smith (singular). The structure is: Is + Subject + V-ing.
- Why the others are wrong: (a) is a Present Simple question. (b) uses “Are”, which is for plural subjects.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- Grammar Function (Task Status): When your boss or teacher asks “What are you doing?”, you must use the Present Continuous. It proves that you are actively focused on a task at this exact moment. Do not use the Present Simple (e.g., I write an email ❌ -> I am writing an email ✅).
- Formula Checklist:
- Always remember the “Be” verb! A very common A1 mistake is forgetting it. (e.g., I working ❌ -> I am working ✅).
- (+) S + am/is/are + V-ing
- (-) S + am/is/are + not + V-ing
- (?) Am/Is/Are + S + V-ing?
- Tricky Singulars: Words like Everyone, Everybody, Nobody, No one and Who always take the singular verb “is”. (e.g., Everyone is working hard).
- Spelling Reminders:
- Drop the “e”: make → making.
- Double the consonant (CVC): put → putting.
- Keep the “y”: copy → copying.