Put the verbs in brackets into the present, past or future perfect continuous tense.
1. we (play) tennis for 3 hours.
2. by the end of this year i (live) here for 20 years.
3. she (study) in london for a year.
4. by breakfast time she (sleep) for 8 hours.
5. when the bus arrived the tourists (wait) for it very long.
6. i looked at the watch. it was 11 o'clock. i (work) at the report for 4 hours.
7. they (sit) there for an hour when the taxi arrived.
8. she (wash) the dishes since the guests left.
9. i (look for) the key for half an hour already.
10. he (go) to this bar every saturday for the last 5 years.
Explanation: We use the present perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past, is still ongoing, and is relevant to the present. In this case, the action of playing tennis started in the past and is still continuing at the moment of speaking.
2. By the end of this year, I will have been living here for 20 years.
Explanation: We use the future perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that will have started in the past and will still be ongoing at a specific point in the future. In this case, the action of living in a place started in the past and will still be ongoing until the end of this year.
3. She will have been studying in London for a year.
Explanation: We use the future perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that will have started in the past and will still be ongoing at a specific point in the future. In this case, the action of studying in London started in the past and will still be ongoing until a specific point in the future.
4. By breakfast time, she will have been sleeping for 8 hours.
Explanation: We use the future perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that will have started in the past and will still be ongoing at a specific point in the future. In this case, the action of sleeping started in the past and will still be ongoing until breakfast time.
5. When the bus arrived, the tourists had been waiting for it for a very long time.
Explanation: We use the past perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past and was ongoing until another point in the past. In this case, the action of waiting for the bus started before the bus arrived and was still ongoing until the moment the bus arrived.
6. I looked at the watch. It was 11 o'clock. I had been working on the report for 4 hours.
Explanation: We use the past perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past, was ongoing, and was completed before another point in the past. In this case, the action of working on the report started before 11 o'clock and was still ongoing until the time I looked at the watch.
7. They had been sitting there for an hour when the taxi arrived.
Explanation: We use the past perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past and was ongoing until another point in the past. In this case, the action of sitting started before the taxi arrived and was still ongoing until the moment the taxi arrived.
8. She has been washing the dishes since the guests left.
Explanation: We use the present perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past, is still ongoing, and is relevant to the present. In this case, the action of washing the dishes started in the past after the guests left and is still ongoing at the moment of speaking.
9. I have been looking for the key for half an hour already.
Explanation: We use the present perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past, is still ongoing, and is relevant to the present. In this case, the action of looking for the key started in the past and is still ongoing at the moment of speaking.
10. He has been going to this bar every Saturday for the last 5 years.
Explanation: We use the present perfect continuous tense to talk about an action that started in the past, is still ongoing, and is relevant to the present. In this case, the action of going to the bar started 5 years ago and is still ongoing every Saturday at the moment of speaking.