Advanced Present Tenses: B2 Exercises

Every answer with the reason behind it. Read the explanation for the ones you got right as well — that is where you find out whether you were right for the right reason.

Multiple choice questions — answers

1. Ordinarily she works from the Berlin office, but she ___ from Lisbon until the refurbishment finishes. → is working

A temporary arrangement with a stated end point takes the present continuous, not the simple.

2. Don't judge him by today — he ___ unusually short with everyone because the audit starts tomorrow. → is being

Is being turns an adjective into deliberate behaviour on this occasion rather than a permanent trait.

3. I ___ that report twice already this morning and I still cannot follow the methodology. → have read

A counted, completed quantity takes the present perfect simple; the continuous would measure duration instead.

4. Her hands are covered in paint because she ___ the studio since eight this morning. → has been decorating

Visible present evidence of an activity that ran up to now is the present perfect continuous.

5. The board ___ constantly rewriting the strategy, which makes long-term planning impossible. → is

Continuous plus constantly expresses irritation at a repeated action, so the auxiliary is is.

6. Which sentence describes a permanent professional fact rather than a temporary one? → She reports on climate policy.

The present simple states what someone permanently does; the other three are all bounded in time.

7. Which sentence uses a stative verb correctly in the continuous? → I'm thinking of moving abroad next year.

Think meaning consider is an activity and takes the continuous; know, own and believe stay simple.

8. So I walk into the meeting and the chair ___ halfway through my own proposal. → is already

The narrative present keeps every verb in the present, which is what makes the anecdote feel immediate.

9. How long ___ on the manuscript before you finally sent it to the publisher's reader? → had you been working

Finally sent places the whole question in the past, so the duration takes the past perfect continuous.

10. The difference between 'I've painted the hallway' and 'I've been painting the hallway' is that ___. → the first reports a finished result, the second the time spent

Present perfect simple reports the completed result; the continuous foregrounds the activity and its duration.

11. He ___ three languages fluently, though at the moment he ___ a fourth. → speaks / is learning

A permanent ability takes the simple; a course of study in progress takes the continuous.

12. Which sentence correctly expresses irritation at a repeated habit? → He is always interrupting in meetings.

Continuous plus always carries the complaint; the simple would state the frequency neutrally.

13. We ___ each other since the conference in Utrecht, but we ___ only twice. → have known / have met

Know is stative so it stays simple, and two occasions is a counted quantity, also simple.

14. The kettle ___ — could you deal with it before it wakes the baby? → is boiling

An action happening at this moment and needing attention takes the present continuous.

15. Which of these is NOT a legitimate use of the present continuous at B2? → A permanent characteristic of a person

Permanent characteristics belong to the present simple; the other three are standard continuous uses.

16. She ___ very generous today, and frankly that is not like her at all. → is being

Is being reads the quality as today's behaviour rather than as her settled character.

17. By any measure that is a remarkable figure: applications ___ every year since the scheme opened. → have been rising

A trend running from a past starting point right up to now takes the present perfect continuous.

18. Which pair correctly contrasts a general truth with a current exception? → Water boils at 100°C, but it's boiling lower up here.

The general truth takes the simple and the local exception in progress takes the continuous.

19. I ___ to reach the supplier all morning and nobody ___ the phone. → have been trying / is answering

All morning up to now is perfect continuous, and the unanswered phone is happening right now.

20. Which sentence would a native speaker use to describe a film's plot? → A journalist discovers a file and everything changes.

Plot summaries and storytelling use the narrative present throughout, whatever the story's own tense.

Fill-in-the-blank questions — answers

1. She normally lectures in Manchester, but this term she ___ teaching a course in Vienna. → is

This term marks a temporary arrangement, so the continuous auxiliary is required.

2. He's ___ awkward about the handover, which is unlike him — he is usually the first to help. → being

Being reframes a trait as behaviour on this occasion rather than as permanent character.

3. We have ___ waiting for the surveyor's report since the middle of March. → been

The present perfect continuous is have plus been plus the -ing form.

4. I've read four of the shortlisted titles and I still ___ decided which one deserves the prize. → haven't

A decision not yet made at this moment takes the negative present perfect.

5. That printer is always ___ down five minutes before a deadline. → breaking

Always plus the -ing form expresses exasperation at a repeated irritation.

6. How long ___ you been living out of a suitcase? → have

The auxiliary in a present perfect continuous question comes before the subject.

7. I ___ what you mean, but I am not convinced the evidence supports it. → see

See meaning understand is stative, so it stays in the simple form.

8. The children ___ exhausted because they have been swimming for two hours. → are

A present state resulting from the activity takes the simple present of be.

9. This year the company ___ hiring almost entirely from outside the sector. → is

A changing practice limited to this year is temporary, so the continuous is used.

10. So there I am at the door, and who ___ standing behind me but the chief executive. → is

The narrative present keeps the whole anecdote in present forms for immediacy.

11. Prices ___ risen sharply every quarter since the new tariffs came in. → have

A repeated completed change up to now takes the present perfect simple.

12. I don't think she ___ the seriousness of the situation yet. → appreciates

Appreciate meaning understand is stative and takes the third-person simple form.

13. You ___ been staring at that spreadsheet for forty minutes without moving. → have

The auxiliary have carries the perfect continuous with a second-person subject.

14. He ___ own the building; he merely manages it on behalf of the trust. → doesn't

Own is stative, so the negative uses the simple auxiliary rather than a continuous form.

15. The team ___ been working on the migration since long before I joined. → has

A singular collective subject takes has with the present perfect continuous.

16. The whole proposal ___ on the assumption that interest rates stay flat, which nobody now expects. → rests

Rest meaning depend on is stative, so the simple form is used even about a current situation.

17. She ___ thinking of applying for the directorship, but she has told nobody. → is

Think meaning consider is dynamic here, so the continuous auxiliary is correct.

18. We ___ met three times this month, which is more than in the whole of last year. → have

A count within an unfinished period takes the present perfect simple.

19. It ___ raining all week and the pitch is completely waterlogged. → has

Been raining needs has as its auxiliary with the impersonal subject it.

20. Every application ___ reviewed by two independent assessors before it reaches the panel. → is

A standing procedure is a general truth, so it takes the present simple passive.

Sentence structure: word ordering — answers

1. Say where someone is based only temporarily. → She is living in Milan while the office relocates.

Say where someone is based only temporarily.

2. Emphasise how long the activity has gone on rather than what you finished. → I have been reading the same chapter all afternoon.

Emphasise how long the activity has gone on rather than what you finished.

3. Complain about a habit rather than simply reporting it. → He is always losing his security pass.

Complain about a habit rather than simply reporting it.

4. Treat a quality as behaviour happening now. → You are being unusually quiet this evening.

Treat a quality as behaviour happening now.

5. State a permanent timetable. → The gallery opens at ten every day except Monday.

State a permanent timetable.

6. Use a stative verb with a starting point in the past. → We have known each other since university.

Use a stative verb with a starting point in the past.

7. Ask about a countable result rather than about duration. → How many chapters have you written so far?

Ask about a countable result rather than about duration.

8. Explain visible evidence with the perfect continuous. → Her eyes are red because she has been crying.

Explain visible evidence with the perfect continuous.

9. Use think as an activity, not as an opinion. → I am thinking of changing career next year.

Use think as an activity, not as an opinion.

10. Describe a trend that is under way right now. → The cost of living is rising faster than wages.

Describe a trend that is under way right now.

11. Tell a short anecdote in the narrative present. → So I open the door and the cat runs straight out.

Tell a short anecdote in the narrative present.

12. Use a sense verb statively to give an impression. → This sauce tastes far too salty to me.

Use a sense verb statively to give an impression.

13. Use the same sense verb as a deliberate action in progress. → The chef is tasting the sauce before he serves it.

Use the same sense verb as a deliberate action in progress.

14. Report something that has not happened up to now. → Nobody has replied to my message yet.

Report something that has not happened up to now.

15. Measure how long an unfinished project has run. → They have been renovating the theatre for eighteen months.

Measure how long an unfinished project has run.

16. Negate a stative verb without using a continuous form. → I do not believe a word of his explanation.

Negate a stative verb without using a continuous form.

17. Use see as an arranged appointment rather than as perception. → She is seeing a specialist about her shoulder.

Use see as an arranged appointment rather than as perception.

18. Express a repeated irritation without using always. → Our supplier keeps missing delivery windows this quarter.

Express a repeated irritation without using always.

19. State a scientific fact. → Water freezes at zero degrees centigrade.

State a scientific fact.

20. Use the perfect simple with a stative-like verb of employment. → He has worked here longer than anyone else on the floor.

Use the perfect simple with a stative-like verb of employment.