EXERCISES

A) Use Present Perfect Continuous to fill in the blanks:

1. I’m tired, because I …… have been working ………. (work) very hard.
2. He ………………………………………… (write) letters all morning.
3. Catherina is getting fatter because she ………………………………… (eat) too much.
4. My mother ………………………………………….. (peel) the potatoes all afternoon.
5. Cathy ………………………………………… (attend) a cookery course since March.
6. How long …………… you ………………………………………….. (learn) English?
7. Where are my eye-glasses? I …………………………….. (look) for them for an hour.
8. Charles ……………………………………………. (escape) from the police for years.
9. How long …………… you ………………………………………… (use) a computer?
10. Elizabeth ………………………………………….. (live) with Mike for three years.
11. She ………………………………. (earn) quite a lot of money for the last two years.
12. It …………………………………………………. (rain) fro six hours.

B) Present Perfect Simple and Present Perfect Continuous

1. The earth __________________ here for billions of years (be).
2. We ________________________ cards for the last few hours (play).
3. We ________________________ problems with our new car recently (have)
4. ____________________________ on anything interesting lately?(you work)
5. Cuba ________________________ a socialist country since 1959 (be)
6. I ________________________ care of my neighbour’s cats while they are away (take)
7. I ________________________ my car for three years (have).
8. ________________________________ an important fight? (the boxer , ever, win)
9. John and Mary ________________________ with each other since the day they got
married (quarrel).
10. It ________________________ hard since last night (rain).
11. I’m tired because I ________________________ well lately. (not feel)
12. ____________________________ your problems? (your parents, always, understand)
13. The patient ________________________ penicillin for several days now (take)
14. A big earthquake ________________________ San Francisco since 1906. (not hit)
15. They ______________________ in San Francisco since they arrived in the USA 20
years ago. (live)
16. He got ill five weeks ago and ________________________ yet. (not recover)
17. Everyone in the Middle East ________________________ about the situation for
decades (worry).
18. We ________________________ very cold weather this year (have)
19. Where ________________________ the money? (you, hide)
20. At last, my favourite team ________________________ against its most important
rival (win)
21. I ________________________ for 6 years. (marry)
22. Dad ________________________ a number of jobs in the last few years (have).
23. The bank is still closed. It ________________________ yet. (not open)
24. Our daughter ___________________________ lipstick since she was 16 (wear).
25. She is angry because her boyfriend ________________________ up yet and she
________________________ for half an hour. (not show, wait).
26. I’m still waiting for an answer. They ________________________ up their minds
yet. (not make)
27. How many times ________________________ the cat today? (Kim feed)
 28. The kids ________________________ on my nerves. They
________________________ too much noise (get, make).
29. My company ________________________ a lot of money in the last few years. They
________________________ hard on an important project. (make, work).
30. They ________________________ our new refrigerator yet, but they will any day
now. (not deliver)

C) Past Simple or Present Perfect Simple

1. The weather _________________ (be) awful in the past few days.
2. We _________________ (wash) the dishes. They’re clean now.
3. _____________________________ (your course, start) yet?
4. Emma _________________ (pack) her suitcase last night.
5. They ________________ (close) the factory. – Really? When ____________________
(that happen)?
6. Shall we play tennis? We _________________ (not play) since we were children.
7. The airplane _________________ (land). The pilot is just getting out.
8. Prices _________________ (go) up. Everything is more expensive this year.
9. I’m tired. We _________________ (walk) 10 miles.
10. The Queen _________________ (arrive) in an RAF helicopter last night.
11. How long _____________________ (Vicky, have) that camera? – For about a month.
12. We ______________________ (just come) back from our holidays.
13. You parcel _________________ (arrive). The postman ________________ (bring) it
two hours ago.
14. He _________________ (be) at his computer for two hours.
15. We _________________ (live) there for ten years but we _________________ (be)
in Birmingham for the last two.
16. We _________________ (not have) a party for ages.
17. My sister’s car is only a year old but she ___________________________ (already
crash) it.
18. Dinosaurs _________________ (roam) the earth millions of years ago.
19. It _____________________ (not rain) yet today.
20. __________________________ (you see) last week’s magazine? - It must be here
somewhere.

D) Past Tense Simple or Past Tense Continuous.

1. George ________________ off the ladder while he ________________ the ceiling.
(fall, paint)
2. Last night I ________________ in bed when I suddenly ________________ a scream.
(read, hear)
3. ________________ TV when I ________________ you? (you watch, phone)
4. Ann ________________ for me when I ________________ . (wait, arrive)
5. Maisie ________________ up the kitchen when John ______________ her to marry
him. (clean, ask)
6. The house ________________ £ 150,000 in 2003. (cost)
7. The fire _______________________ at six in the morning. (still burn)
8. My brother ________________ a new job a week ago (get).
9. Columbus ________________ America over 500 years ago (discover)
10. She ____________ not interested in the book because she ________________ it (be,
not understand)
11. ________________ at school yesterday? (you be)
 12. We ________________ in a house near the sea last summer (live)
13. She ________________ the piano very well when she ________________ young
(can play, be)
14. She ________________ the office very early last night (leave).
15. I ________________ a friend while I ________________ the shopping (meet, do)
16. I ________________ for my things when I ________________ someone call my
name (pay, hear)
17. I ________________ around and ________________ Judy. (turn, see)
18. She ________________ a bright yellow dress when I ________________ her last
(wear, see)
19. We ________________ to have a cup of tea. (decide)
20. While the waiter ________________ up the pieces of glass he ______________ his
finger (pick, cut)
21. Then we ________________ the cafe and ________________ good bye (leave, say)
22. I ________ the fire at six and it ___________ brightly when Tom came in at seven.
(light, still burn)
23. My dog _______________ along quietly when Mary’s Pekinese _____________ him.
(walk, attack)
24. When I ________________ she ________________ lunch. She said she always
________________ lunch at 12:30. (arrive, have, have)
25. What ________________ of his last book? –I ________________ it a lot (you think,
like)
26. He suddenly ________________ that he ________________ in the wrong direction.
(realize, travel)
27. He ________________ guitar when someone ________________ the window and
________________ out a bucket of water. (play, open, throw)
28. He ________________ us to go out in the boat yesterday because a strong wind
________________ (not allow, blow)
29. The next day, as they _______________ that the police ______________ for them,
they ____________ the coats in the woods and _____________ off in different directions.
(know, look, hide, go)
30. When I ________________ home they ________________ around a fire. Jack
________________ a crossword puzzle, Judy ________________ and the others
________________. Mother ________________ at me and said: “Come and sit down”
(come, sit, do, knit, read, smile)