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

1 (B)

• Correct (B) has been making: The Present Perfect Continuous (PPC) emphasizes an annoying, ongoing action (making noise) over a period of time (“all morning”).
• Common Mistake (A) has made: Present Perfect Simple (PPS) focuses on completion and loses the emphasis on the ongoing, irritating noise.
• Strong Distractor (C) is making: Present Continuous ignores the duration leading up to the present.
• Structural Error (D) has be making: Missing the word “been”.

2 (C)

• Correct (C) has destroyed: The focus is on the exact quantity of ruined materials (“over 50 sheets”). We use PPS for completed quantities and results.
• Common Mistake (A) has been destroying: You cannot use continuous tenses when stating exactly how many items have been affected/completed.
• Strong Distractor (B) is destroying: Focuses on the exact present moment, ignoring the final tally.
• Structural Error (D) has destroy: Requires the past participle “destroyed”.

3 (D)

• Correct (D) have been trying: Trying is an ongoing, frustrating process. The action has been continuous for “two hours” and is still unsuccessful.
• Common Mistake (A) have tried: Implies the attempt is over and done with, which doesn’t capture the ongoing struggle as effectively.
• Strong Distractor (B) am trying: Doesn’t account for the “two hours” timeline.
• Structural Error (C) try: Present simple.

4 (B)

• Correct (B) hasn’t printed: A negative result up to now. The focus is on the lack of a completed product (zero pages). PPS is required for final results.
• Common Mistake (A) hasn’t been printing: While possible in some contexts, PPS is much stronger here to emphasize the failure to produce a single finished item.
• Strong Distractor (C) isn’t printing: Focuses only on this exact second.
• Structural Error (D) hasn’t print: Requires the past participle “printed”.

5 (B)

• Correct (B) has been jamming: PPC is frequently used to describe actions that repeat constantly over a recent period (“recently”, “constantly”), causing ongoing annoyance.
• Common Mistake (A) has jammed: Sounds like it only jammed once and is now fixed, losing the “repeated frustration” aspect.
• Strong Distractor (C) jams: Present simple describes a permanent habit, but “recently” points to a past-to-present trend.
• Structural Error (D) is jamming: Misses the recent past connection.

6 (A)

• Correct (A) have restarted: Mentions an exact frequency/quantity of completed actions (“at least six times”). PPS must be used.
• Common Mistake (B) have been restarting: You cannot use PPC when counting the specific number of times you finished an action.
• Strong Distractor (C) am restarting: Only covers right now.
• Structural Error (D) restart: Present simple habit.

7 (C)

• Correct (C) have known: Exception! “Know” is a stative verb (a state of mind). It cannot take the “-ing” form, even with a duration (“for a while”). We must use PPS.
• Common Mistake (A) have been knowing: Applying the continuous rule to a stative verb.
• Strong Distractor (B) am knowing: Also uses continuous for a state verb.
• Structural Error (D) have know: Requires “known”.

8 (B)

• Correct (B) has been leaking: Leaking is a continuous, messy process. PPC explains the ongoing issue that is causing the physical mess on the floor right now.
• Common Mistake (A) has leaked: PPS implies the leak is completely finished, but the context indicates an active, ongoing emergency.
• Strong Distractor (C) is leaking: Ignores the “since 9 AM” duration.
• Structural Error (D) has leak: Requires “leaked”.

9 (B)

• Correct (B) has stained: The staining is a completed action with a visible, permanent result (a ruined shirt). PPS is used for completed damage.
• Common Mistake (A) has been staining: Implies a continuous, deliberate process of ruining the shirt, rather than an accident that has already resulted in damage.
• Strong Distractor (D) stains: General habit.
• Structural Error (C) has stain: Requires “stained”.

10 (B)

• Correct (B) have been calling: Emphasizes the ongoing, repeated, and frustrating action of calling IT “all week” without success.
• Common Mistake (A) have called: Sounds like a quick, finished checklist item rather than an ongoing, desperate effort.
• Strong Distractor (C) am calling: Focuses on right now.
• Structural Error (D) call: General routine.

11 (A)

• Correct (A) haven’t received: A negative completed result up to now. The focus is on the failure to achieve a milestone (getting a reply).
• Common Mistake (B) haven’t been receiving: Focuses on the process, which doesn’t fit the binary result of whether an email arrived or not.
• Strong Distractor (C) don’t receive: Means you generally never receive emails as a rule.
• Structural Error (D) haven’t receive: Requires “received”.

12 (B)

• Correct (B) has been flashing: Flashing is a repetitive visual action. Using PPC here emphasizes how annoying and continuous the red light has been “since yesterday.”
• Common Mistake (A) has flashed: Implies it flashed once and stopped.
• Strong Distractor (C) is flashing: Lacks the past-to-present timeline.
• Structural Error (D) has flash: Requires “flashed”.

13 (B)

• Correct (B) has needed: Exception! “Need” is a stative verb. It is never used in continuous tenses, even with a duration (“for months”).
• Common Mistake (A) has been needing: Using the “-ing” form for a verb of necessity/state.
• Strong Distractor (C) is needing: Same mistake, using continuous for a stative verb.
• Structural Error (D) has need: Requires “needed”.

14 (C)

• Correct (C) have replaced: Focuses on the exact quantity finished so far (“three times”). PPS is required for counting completed actions.
• Common Mistake (A) have been replacing: You cannot use PPC to count the specific number of times an action was completed.
• Strong Distractor (B) am replacing: Focuses only on this exact second.
• Structural Error (D) have replace: Requires “replaced”.

15 (D)

• Correct (D) have been reading: Reading a manual is an active, ongoing effort. PPC highlights this frustrating, continuous attempt over “almost an hour.”
• Common Mistake (A) have read: Implies you finished the whole book and understood it, which contradicts “it is no help at all.”
• Strong Distractor (B) am reading: Ignores the duration.
• Structural Error (C) read: Present simple or past simple disconnected from the present result.

16 (A)

• Correct (A) haven’t understood: Exception! “Understand” is a stative verb (mental state). It must be used in PPS.
• Common Mistake (B) haven’t been understanding: Applying the continuous rule to a stative verb.
• Strong Distractor (C) don’t understood: Grammatically invalid mix.
• Structural Error (D) haven’t understand: Requires “understood”.

17 (B)

• Correct (B) have been waiting: Waiting is a classic continuous action. PPC is the most natural tense to emphasize the time wasted while waiting.
• Common Mistake (A) have waited: While grammatically possible, PPC is much more powerful for emphasizing the ongoing frustration of waiting.
• Strong Distractor (C) are waiting: Ignores “since Tuesday”.
• Structural Error (D) wait: General habit.

18 (B)

• Correct (B) has wasted: Focuses on a finished, exact quantity of lost time (“three hours”). PPS is used to quantify the final damage.
• Common Mistake (A) has been wasting: While you can be in the process of wasting time, when you state the exact total amount lost, PPS is grammatically correct.
• Strong Distractor (C) is wasting: Ignores the total tally up to now.
• Structural Error (D) has waste: Requires “wasted”.

19 (C)

• Correct (C) have been working: Emphasizes the intense, ongoing effort of working “lately”.
• Common Mistake (A) have worked: Sounds like the work is already completely finished.
• Strong Distractor (B) am working: Misses the “lately” (past-to-present) connection.
• Structural Error (D) have work: Requires “worked”.

20 (C)

• Correct (C) has been: Exception! The verb “to be” is stative. Even with the duration “this entire week”, it cannot be continuous here. We must use PPS.
• Common Mistake (A) has been being: Applying continuous rules to the verb “to be” is incorrect for general states of existence.
• Strong Distractor (B) is being: Used only for temporary conscious behavior, not for a broken machine.
• Structural Error (D) has be: Requires the past participle “been”.

When writing a complaint email to an IT department (or customer service), you need to express two main ideas: how annoying the problem is, and exactly how much damage it has caused. Mixing the Present Perfect Continuous (PPC) and Present Perfect Simple (PPS) helps you complain like a native speaker.

1 Emphasizing Ongoing Annoyance → Use PPC (have/has been + V-ing)

To complain about a machine making noise, leaking, flashing, or causing a continuous nuisance, use PPC. It shows that the problem started in the past, is happening right now, and is driving you crazy.

• Example: “The printer has been making a loud noise all day.” (Focus on the irritating process).
• Example: “I have been waiting for support for hours!” (Focus on the frustrating duration).

2 Reporting Exact Damages & Results → Use PPS (have/has + V3/ed)

When you need to provide proof of the problem, you will usually state how many times something failed, or how much material was ruined. You MUST use PPS for specific quantities.

• Example: “The printer has destroyed 50 pages.” (Focus on the quantifiable damage).
• Never say: “The printer has been destroying 50 pages.”

3 Repetitive Actions (The “Constant Error” Rule)

If a machine does something repeatedly over a recent period (like paper jams), we often use PPC to emphasize that it is a continuous pattern of annoyance.

• Example: “The paper tray has been jamming constantly lately.”

4 The Stative Verb Trap (Crucial for B1)

Even if you have suffered from the problem for months, verbs describing states of mind, necessity, or existence (e.g., know, understand, need, want, be) cannot take the continuous “-ing” form.

• Correct: “We have needed a new printer for months.”
• Incorrect: “We have been needing a new printer for months.”