We use the present perfect continuous
- For actions that started in the past and continue
to the present:
He has been waiting for you all day (=
todavía está esperando).
I've been working on this essay since eight o'clock this morning (=
todavía no lo he terminado).
They have been travelling since last July(= todavía no han vuelto).
- For actions that have just finished and the
important thing is the result:
She has been
cooking since last night (= y la comida preparada tiene
un aspecto delicioso).
It's been
raining (= y las calles aún están mojadas).
Someone's been
eating my chips (= quedan la mitad).
REMEMBER that we usually translate this tense with the
Spanish expression "llevar haciendo" (She has been waiting for you
for hours! =¡Lleva esperándote horas!)
If you want to practise some present perfect in songs
here you have Mr Postman by The Beatles and Counting Stars by One Republic.
We use the past perfect continuous
- for actions in progress in the past before
another action happened:
I had been working for hours before I fell asleep (había estado
trabajando desde hacía horas, cuando me quedé dormida).
- To express cause and effect:
I was really tired because I had been working for hours. (Estaba muy cansada porque había estado trabajando
desde hacía horas).
REMEMBER that we usually translate this tense with the
Spanish expression "llevaba haciendo" :
I was really tired because I had
been working for hours. (Estaba muy cansada porque llevaba trabajando desde hacía horas)
And if you want to practise here you have some
exercises with answers:
https://www.burlingtonbooks.com/Spain/Page.aspx?PageID=411 (look for Present Perfect Continuous / Past Perfect Continuous)
* Images from Google Images
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