Lesson 18: Present Continuous (I am doing )

This means:

She is driving now, at the time of speaking. The action is not finished.

Present Continuous :

am/ is/ are + verb-ing


I am (=I'm ) driving
he/she/it is (=he's, she's, it's) working
we/you/they are (=we're, you're, they're) doing, etc.


I am doing something

I'm in the middle of doing it; I've started doing it and I haven't finished yet.

Examples:

1. Please don't make so much noise. I'm trying to work.
2. A:"Where's Mark" B: "He's having a shower".
3. Let's go out now. It isn't raining anymore.
4. (at a party) Hello, Jane. Are you enjoying the party?
5. What's all that noise. What's going on

The action is not necessarily happening at the time of speaking.

For example:

Steve is talking to a friend on the phone. He says:

"I'm reading a really good book at the moment. It's about love and friendship."

Steve is not reading the book at the time of speaking. He means that he has started it, but has not finished it yet. He is in the middle of reading it.

Some more examples:

1. Kate wants to work in Italy, so she's learning Italian (but perhaps she isn't learning Italian at the time of speaking)
2. Some friends of mine are building their own house. They hope to finish it next summer.