📚 Present Perfect vs Past Simple Grammar Exercise

Complete the exercises below to practice Present Perfect vs Past Simple

Step 1 of 4

👤 Student Information

Section A: Fill in the Blanks (Present Perfect Continuous)

Complete the sentences using the correct present perfect continuous form of the verbs in brackets.

1. I (study) English for three years, and I (make) great progress recently.

2. The children (play) in the garden all morning.

3. She (not feel) well lately, so she (rest) at home.

4. We (wait) for the bus for twenty minutes, and it (rain) the whole time.

5. My brother (work) on his project since last week, and he (stay) up late every night.

6. The dog (bark) loudly for hours while the neighbors (try) to sleep.

7. The students (prepare) for their exams since the beginning of the month, and they (attend) extra classes.

8. He (not sleep) well recently because he (worry) about his job interview.

9. We (renovate) our house for the past six months.

10. The company (expand) rapidly this year, and they (hire) new employees every month.

Section B: Multiple Choice Questions (Present Perfect Continuous)

Choose the correct present perfect continuous form for each sentence.

1. Maria ___ for her driving test for two months.

has practiced
has been practicing
is practicing
practiced

2. The workers ___ the road since early morning.

have repaired
have been repairing
are repairing
repaired

3. I ___ this book for three hours and I'm almost finished.

have read
have been reading
am reading
read

4. They ___ their new business plan all week.

have discussed
have been discussing
are discussing
discussed

5. Sarah ___ to lose weight since January.

has tried
has been trying
is trying
tried

6. The cat ___ under the bed for the past hour.

has hidden
has been hiding
is hiding
hid

7. We ___ our vacation plans for weeks now.

have made
have been making
are making
made

8. The baby ___ for twenty minutes and won't stop.

has cried
has been crying
is crying
cried

9. My friends ___ a surprise party for me all month.

have planned
have been planning
are planning
planned

10. The teacher ___ the same lesson for the third time today.

has explained
has been explaining
is explaining
explained

Section C: Paragraph Completion (Present Perfect Continuous)

Complete the paragraphs using the correct present perfect continuous form of the verbs in brackets.

My neighbor Tom (learn) to play the guitar for the past year. He (practice) every evening after work, and the whole neighborhood (listen) to his progress. At first, the sounds coming from his apartment were quite terrible, but lately he (improve) dramatically. His girlfriend (encourage) him to join a local band. She (look) for suitable groups online for weeks now. Tom (gain) confidence with each passing day. We (enjoy) his evening concerts more and more.

Our city (experience) rapid growth over the last decade. New businesses (open) every month, and young professionals (move) here from other cities. The local government (invest) heavily in infrastructure improvements. Construction workers (build) new roads and bridges for the past three years. The population (increase) by about 5% annually. However, housing prices (rise) as well, making it difficult for some residents to afford living here. City planners (work) on affordable housing solutions to address this growing concern.

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