Present Perfect Simple vs. Present Perfect Continuous – English Grammar Exercises for B1

1 (B)

• Correct (B) have known: “Know” is a stative verb (State verb). It describes a state of mind, not an action. Therefore, it cannot be used in the continuous form, even with a duration marker like “since high school”. We must use Present Perfect Simple (PPS).
• Common Mistake (A) have been knowing: Applying the continuous rule to a stative verb.
• Structural Error (D) are knowing: Present continuous is invalid for stative verbs.
• Strong Distractor (C) know: Present simple loses the connection from the past to the present.

2 (C)

• Correct (C) have been dating: “Date” is an action verb. The speaker is emphasizing the continuous, ongoing duration of the romantic relationship over the last three months. Present Perfect Continuous (PPC) is perfect here.
• Common Mistake (A) have dated: PPS focuses on a completed result rather than the ongoing, immersive process of dating.
• Structural Error (D) have been date: Requires the “-ing” form.
• Strong Distractor (B) date: Present simple lacks the past-to-present timeline.

3 (A)

• Correct (A) have had: “Have” (meaning possession or experiencing a feeling/crush) is a stative verb. It cannot take the “-ing” form. We must use PPS.
• Common Mistake (B) have been having: Using continuous forms for stative possession.
• Structural Error (C) am having: Also uses continuous for a state.
• Strong Distractor (D) had had: Past perfect means the crush ended before another past event, but the context implies the crush lasted up until the recent relationship started.

4 (D)

• Correct (D) have been talking: Talking is an active, ongoing process. PPC highlights the intense, continuous communication “every single night” recently.
• Common Mistake (A) have talked: PPS sounds like a quick, finished checklist rather than an ongoing passionate conversation.
• Structural Error (C) have talk: Requires the past participle “talked”.
• Strong Distractor (B) talk: Present simple states a general routine, losing the emphasis on “lately”.

5 (C)

• Correct (C) has been: The verb “to be” is stative. Even with the duration “since 2020”, it cannot be continuous. We must use PPS.
• Common Mistake (A) has been being: Applying continuous rules to the verb “to be” in this context is incorrect.
• Structural Error (D) has be: Requires the past participle “been”.
• Strong Distractor (B) is being: Used only for temporary behavior (e.g., “he is being silly”), not for long-term states.

6 (B)

• Correct (B) have been texting: Texting is an active, continuous process that explains the present result (being tired).
• Common Mistake (A) have texted: Focuses on the completed messages rather than the exhausting, non-stop process.
• Structural Error (D) have texting: Missing the word “been”.
• Strong Distractor (C) text: General habit.

7 (B)

• Correct (B) have realized: “Realize” is a stative verb (mental state). It cannot be used in continuous tenses.
• Common Mistake (A) have been realizing: Using “-ing” for a verb of the mind.
• Structural Error (D) have realize: Requires the past participle “realized”.
• Strong Distractor (C) am realizing: Present continuous is generally incorrect for sudden mental states.

8 (C)

• Correct (C) have you known: Asking about the duration of a state (knowing someone). Must use PPS because “know” is a stative verb.
• Common Mistake (A) have you been knowing: Applying the “How long + PPC” rule blindly without noticing the stative verb.
• Structural Error (B) do you know: Asks a simple present question, not a duration from the past.
• Strong Distractor (D) are you knowing: Grammatically invalid.

9 (A)

• Correct (A) have you been hanging: “Hang out” is an action verb. Asking “How long” about an ongoing action requires PPC to emphasize the duration of the dating process.
• Common Mistake (D) have you hung: PPS focuses on a finished result, which is less natural when asking about an ongoing romantic process.
• Structural Error (B) have you hang: Requires the past participle “hung”.
• Strong Distractor (C) are you hanging: Present continuous cannot be used with “How long”.

10 (D)

• Correct (D) have liked: “Like” is a stative verb (emotion). Even though it’s growing “more and more”, we must use PPS.
• Common Mistake (A) have been liking: Applying continuous rules to an emotion verb.
• Structural Error (C) am liking: Also grammatically incorrect for the same reason.
• Strong Distractor (B) like: Present simple loses the “since we got together” timeline.

11 (B)

• Correct (B) have been spending: Emphasizes the ongoing, repeated action (spending free time) over a recent period.
• Common Mistake (A) have spent: Focuses on the final amount of time spent, losing the “ongoing habit” feel of the sentence.
• Structural Error (D) are spending: Does not connect well with “recently” to show a past-to-present span.
• Strong Distractor (C) spend: General habit.

12 (A)

• Correct (A) have believed: “Believe” is a stative verb (mental state). It must be in PPS, even with the duration “for a few weeks now”.
• Common Mistake (B) have been believing: Using PPC for a stative verb.
• Structural Error (D) have believe: Requires “believed”.
• Strong Distractor (C) am believing: Incorrect tense for verbs of belief.

13 (C)

• Correct (C) have been trying: Trying is an active, ongoing effort. PPC shows they are still in the middle of this frustrating process.
• Common Mistake (A) have tried: Implies the attempts are completely over.
• Structural Error (D) have trying: Missing “been”.
• Strong Distractor (B) try: Present simple.

14 (B)

• Correct (B) has been opening up: Opening up (sharing feelings) is a continuous, developing action recently.
• Common Mistake (A) has opened up: Suggests he only did it once and finished.
• Structural Error (D) has open up: Requires “opened”.
• Strong Distractor (C) is opening up: Loses the “lately” past-to-present duration.

15 (A)

• Correct (A) haven’t met: A negative completed result up to now. You use PPS to say that a specific milestone (meeting the parents) has not been achieved yet.
• Common Mistake (B) haven’t been meeting: This would mean you are avoiding a continuous process of meeting them, which is unnatural.
• Structural Error (D) haven’t meet: Requires “met”.
• Strong Distractor (C) don’t meet: Present simple negative.

16 (C)

• Correct (C) have been thinking: “Think” meaning “to consider/plan” is an ACTION verb (unlike “think” meaning “believe”). Because it’s an action here, PPC perfectly describes the ongoing planning process.
• Common Mistake (A) have thought: PPS implies the thinking process is over and a decision has been made.
• Structural Error (D) have thinking: Missing “been”.
• Strong Distractor (B) think: General present truth.

17 (B)

• Correct (B) haven’t talked: A negative result up to now. The focus is on the fact that the action (telling people) is zero. PPS is used for quantities and results.
• Common Mistake (A) haven’t been talking: Focuses on the process, which doesn’t fit the milestone of “You are the very first person”.
• Structural Error (D) haven’t talk: Requires “talked”.
• Strong Distractor (C) don’t talk: Means you generally never talk to anyone as a rule.

18 (A)

• Correct (A) haven’t known: “Know” is a stative verb. Must use PPS.
• Common Mistake (B) haven’t been knowing: Using continuous for a stative verb.
• Structural Error (D) haven’t know: Requires “known”.
• Strong Distractor (C) don’t know: Means you don’t know him at all right now.

19 (C)

• Correct (C) have been smiling: Smiling is a continuous physical action that has been happening “all evening”. The friend is pointing out this ongoing behavior.
• Common Mistake (A) have smiled: Focuses on a single, completed smile.
• Structural Error (B) are smiled: Passive voice, totally incorrect.
• Strong Distractor (D) have smile: Requires “smiled”.

20 (B)

• Correct (B) has seemed: “Seem” is a stative verb. It must be used in PPS.
• Common Mistake (A) has been seeming: Applying the continuous rule to a stative verb.
• Structural Error (D) has seem: Requires “seemed”.
• Strong Distractor (C) is seeming: Also grammatically incorrect for the same reason.

When updating a friend about a relationship, you often need to express how long something has been happening. The key is dividing your vocabulary into two groups:

1 Action Verbs (The “Dating” Process) → Use PPC (have/has been + V-ing)

Action verbs describe physical activities or processes (e.g., date, talk, text, hang out, kiss, try). When these actions are ongoing over a period of time, use the Present Perfect Continuous to emphasize the duration and passion.

• Correct: We have been dating for three months. (The ongoing process).
• Correct: We have been talking all night!

2 State Verbs (The “Knowing & Feeling” Process) → Use PPS (have/has + V3/ed)

State verbs describe a state of mind, emotion, possession, or existence. They NEVER take the “-ing” form, even if the situation has lasted for years! You must strictly use the Present Perfect Simple.

• Emotions: like, love, hate, prefer
• Mental States: know, believe, realize, understand, seem
• Possession/Being: have, own, belong, be
• Correct: I have known him since high school. (NOT: have been knowing).
• Correct: I have liked him for years. (NOT: have been liking).

3 The “Think” & “Have” Trap:

• Think (Believe = State): I have thought he was cute since day one. (Use PPS).
• Think (Consider/Plan = Action): We have been thinking about a trip. (Use PPC).
• Have (Possession = State): I have had a crush on him. (Use PPS).
• Have (Experience = Action): We have been having a great time. (Use PPC).