How do we spell the Present Continuous Tense?
We make the present continuous tense by adding -ing to the base verb. Normally it's simple—we just add -ing. But sometimes we have to change the word a little. Perhaps we double the last letter, or we drop a letter. Here are the rules to help you know how to spell the present continuous tense.
| Basic rule | Just add -ing to the base verb: | ||||||||||
| work | > | working | |||||||||
| play | > | playing | |||||||||
| assist | > | assisting | |||||||||
| see | > | seeing | |||||||||
| be | > | being | |||||||||
| Exception 1 | If the base verb ends in consonant + stressed vowel + consonant, double the last letter:
| ||||||||||
| stop | > | stopping | |||||||||
| run | > | running | |||||||||
| begin | > | beginning | |||||||||
| Note that this exception does not apply when the last syllable of the base verb is not stressed: | |||||||||||
| open | > | opening | |||||||||
| Exception 2 | If the base verb ends in ie, change the ie to y: | ||||||||||
| lie | > | lying | |||||||||
| die | > | dying | |||||||||
| Exception 3 | If the base verb ends in vowel + consonant + e, omit the e: | ||||||||||
| come | > | coming | |||||||||
| mistake | > | mistaking | |||||||||
