I've been so busy lately.
I've been painting the house.
I've been studying hard to take my IELTS in June.
Oh no! I've left my bank card at home!
What's the difference between these 3 sentences?
in recent history (maybe the last 2 weeks) this speaker has been busy and is STILL busy at the time of speaking, the verb BE is a state verb so this is in SIMPLE form
in recent history, this speaker has been painting his house and he is STILL painting his house - the house painting is NOT FINISHED, and painting a house is a long action --> you need the CONTINUOUS form
same as 2. The speaker has not taken the IELTS yet so he is STILL studying and studying is a long action --> CONTINUOUS form
the speaker is talking about a PAST COMPLETED action - he LEFT his bank card at home, but this action is AFFECTING him NOW so you must use PRESENT PERFECT
What does PERFECT mean?
It means "up to a point in time"
PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE - up to now, possibly a state verb or just finished, but its still affecting the present
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS - up to now, still going
PAST PERFECT - up to a point in the past
You will need to use this verb tense in your speaking and writing in IELTS - so study and get it right! I'm here to help. Here is a FREE lesson on English verbs.
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