Lesson 32: Introducing the Progressive Tenses

32.1

Introducing the Progressive Tenses

The progressive tenses are used to emphasize actions that are ongoing at a given point in time.

There are more progressive tenses, but we’ll cover those in the next lesson. In this lesson we’ll just be covering the present progressive. Once you have the present progressive down, the rest of the progressive tenses will be easy to learn.

32.2

Formation of the Progressive Tenses

The formation of the progressive tenses is made up of two verbs:

1. A conjugated form of estar (to be)
2. and the present participle of the action verb.

Estar tells us who does the action and when it happens, and the present participle tells us what the action is.

If you’ve completed the practice from all previous lessons, then you’ve already learned to conjugate estar in all the ways needed to form the progressive tenses! The only new formation you need to learn is the present participle. So let’s dig in!

Note: You may also hear the term gerund or gerundio in Spanish to refer to this form. We’ve chosen present participle to contrast with past participle as the terms participle and gerund are a little tricky to define across languages.

32.3

Present Participles in English

Here are some examples of present participles in English:

As you can see, English has present participles that are formed regularly by adding -ing (talking, eating, living). Spanish has both regular and irregular present participles. Let’s start with the regulars.

32.4

Regular Present Participles in Spanish

Finding regular present participle forms is a simple two step process:

1. We find the root of the verb by dropping the ending.
2. Then, we add ‑ANDO for ‑AR verbs and ‑IENDO for ‑ER and ‑IR verbs.

32.5

Iregular Present Participles in Spanish

Of course, there are some irregulars; here are a few you will encounter in your VerbMaster practice:

32.6

Regular Present Participles in Spanish

OK! Now that we know what the present participle is, it’s time to put it to use with a progressive tense. Let’s start with the present progressive.

1. To review, estar is conjugated in the present like so:

2. Find the present participle of the verb being performed; add the ending -ANDO to -AR verbs and the ending -IENDO to -ER and -IR verbs:

3. Combine the conjugated form of estar with the present participle.

32.7

Using the Present Progressive

Below are some examples of how you can use the present progressive in the real world:

Estoy hablando con la capitana sobre nuestro problema con el pulpo.

I am talking to the captain about our octopus problem.

Estoy hablando con la capitana sobre nuestro problema con el pulpo.

I am talking to the captain about our octopus problem.

Estás comiendo demasiado arroz.

You are eating too much rice.

Estás comiendo demasiado arroz.

You are eating too much rice.

Él está viviendo debajo de las escaleras por ahora.

He is living under the stairs for now.

Él está viviendo debajo de las escaleras por ahora.

He is living under the stairs for now.