I'm not cooking. Are you? | Engoo

Please refresh the page to get the latest updates.

Materials Daily News

I'm not cooking. Are you?

Forming Negative and Interrogative Sentences in Present Continuous Tense

4

Intermediate

In the last lesson, we learned to say that something is happening now. By the end of this lesson, you will be able to ask if something is happening now and talk about things that are not happening now.

Sentence Practice

He is cooking now.
He is not cooking now.
Is he cooking now?

You are dancing.
You are not dancing.
Are you dancing?

Negative Present Continuous

Remember that the present continuous is 'be' + main verb-ing. 'Be' is a 'helping verb' here, because it does not have any meaning in the sentence, but it 'helps' us form a grammatical structure.

To form negative sentences in this tense, put 'not' in between the helping verb and the main verb: helping verb 'be' + not + main verb -ing.

I am not singing.
He's not sleeping.
We're not studying.

Forming negative sentences in the present continuous is the same process as forming them in the simple present: I cook becomes I do not cook. We negate the helping verb instead of directly negating the main verb: "I cook" does not become "I cook not".

Present Continuous Questions

To form yes-no questions in this tense, switch the subject and the helping verb:

You are sleeping. → Are you sleeping?
It is raining. → Is it raining?
They are coming. → Are they coming?

Dialogue Practice

The Weather

	Zach Is it snowing outside?
	Nina No, it's not.
	Zach Is it raining then?
	Nina I don't know.

Housemates

	Lauren Is Dylan watching TV in the living room?
	Andrei No, he isn't.
	Lauren Is he cooking then?
	Andrei I don't know.

Going Somewhere

	Henry Are Susan and Dylan going to the park?
	Jim No, they aren't.
	Henry Are they going to the mall then?
	Jim I'm not sure.

Fill in the Blanks

Fill in the blanks with the negative present continuous form of the verb.

1.

Tim and Sally (do not play) together.

2.

I (do not wait) for the mailman to come.

3.

They (do not go) to Japan this year.

4.

My uncle (does not come) to our house today.

5.

She (does not drink) beer these days.

6.

We (do not take) the taxi home. Let's walk home instead.

7.

The baby (does not cry) now.

Sentence Building

Make these sentences into questions and change their verbs into present continuous tense. The first one is done for you.

Example

The people jump.

The people jump. → Are the people jumping?

The man sits near the pool.

The man sits near the pool.

Sentence Building

Answer the following questions using the negative form of the verb.

Example

Are the people sitting? → No, they are not sitting.

Is the man standing near the pool?
Is the dog barking?
Is the woman washing her clothes?
Is the airplane landing?
Is the girl jumping?
Are the cats fighting?

Share this: