Wisdom English Learn about the world. Grow your English.
โ† Back to Grammar
Part 2 ยท Episode 3 B1-B2

I’ve Been Working All Night

๐Ÿ“ Present Perfect Continuous

Marie Curie ยท 1902: Marie Curie's radium research ๐Ÿ“– 5 min read

Episode 3: I’ve Been Working All Night

Present Perfect Continuous โ€” Marie Curie, 1902 (B1-B2)

Grammar Box

Meaning: Present Perfect Continuous emphasizes the duration and ongoing nature of an action that started in the past and continues to affect the present moment.

Form: have/has + been + verb-ing

Example 1: “I’ve been studying French for three years.” (still ongoing, emphasizes duration)

Example 2: “She’s been working on this project all week.” (recently finished or still continuing, shows effort)

Common mistake: Wrong: “I’ve been knowing him for years.” Better: “I’ve known him for years.” (stative verbs don’t use continuous)

The Challenge

Luna rubbed her tired eyes at 3 a.m., surrounded by books and notes for her exam. “I worked all night,” she said wearily. Professor Wisdom appeared, holding a glowing test tube. “Did you finish working, or have you been working continuously until this very moment?” Luna looked at her still-open textbook and realized the difference mattered. The watch pulsed with a soft green glow, and they stepped into a laboratory filled with mysterious luminescence.

The Journey

Marie Curie stood in her makeshift laboratory in Paris in 1902, her face illuminated by the faint blue-green glow of radium compounds that she and her husband Pierre had been isolating for years. This Polish-born physicist had been working in conditions that would shock modern scientists: no proper ventilation, inadequate equipment, and exposure to radiation whose dangers remained unknown.

The shed they used as a laboratory was freezing in winter and sweltering in summer, yet Marie had been processing tons of pitchblende ore, stirring massive vats of material for hours at a time. Her hands were scarred and burned from the corrosive chemicals, her health deteriorating from constant exposure to radioactive materials. Despite these hardships, she persisted with fierce determination that bordered on obsession.

“I’ve been working on this isolation for nearly four years,” she confided to a colleague who visited late one evening, her voice hoarse with exhaustion. The continuous effort had taken its toll: her weight had dropped dangerously, dark circles shadowed her eyes, and her hands trembled slightly from fatigue. Yet in those tired eyes burned an unquenchable passion for discovery.

The smell of chemical reagents hung heavy in the air, mixing with the earthy scent of raw ore and the metallic tang of the equipment. Marie’s dress was stained with acids, her hair pulled back in a practical bun that had come loose hours ago. She had been standing at the same workbench since dawn, and now, well past midnight, she continued her meticulous measurements.

“Look,” she whispered to Pierre, who had been helping her measure the glow intensity. “We’ve been observing this phenomenon for months, and it keeps proving that this element exists.” Her discovery would eventually win her a Nobel Prize, but in that moment, she was simply a scientist who had been chasing truth through years of relentless work.

The Deep Dive

Present Perfect Continuous connects past actions to the present moment while emphasizing duration and the ongoing or recently completed nature of the activity. “I’ve been working” suggests either that you’re still working or you just stopped, and importantly, it highlights the time and effort involved. This differs from Present Perfect Simple (“I’ve worked”), which focuses more on completion or result.

Use this tense when the duration or continuous nature matters more than the completion. “I’ve been reading this book” emphasizes your ongoing engagement, while “I’ve read this book” emphasizes that you finished it. The continuous form often explains present evidence: “You’ve been crying” (your eyes are red now), or “It’s been raining” (the ground is wet now).

Avoid this tense with stative verbs that describe states rather than actions. Never say “I’ve been knowing” or “I’ve been believing.” Also, don’t overuse it for completed actions where the result matters more than the process. “I’ve painted the room” is better than “I’ve been painting the room” if you want to emphasize the finished result rather than the ongoing effort.

More Examples

History: “Before his victory, Washington’s army had been fighting for independence for six long years.” (duration and hardship)

Science: “Researchers have been studying this protein’s structure since 2015, and they’re close to understanding it fully.” (ongoing research)

Everyday: “Sorry I’m late โ€” I’ve been waiting for the bus for 40 minutes.” (explains current situation)

Formal: “The committee has been reviewing applications throughout the quarter.” (ongoing professional process)

Informal: “You look tired. Have you been working out?” (present evidence of recent activity)

Contrast: “I’ve written three reports” (completed, result matters) vs “I’ve been writing reports all day” (duration and effort matter)

Practice & Reflection

Exercises:

  1. Fill in the blank: She looks exhausted because she __ (study) for finals all week.

  2. Correct the mistake: “They’ve been owning this house for ten years.”

  3. Choose and explain: Which emphasizes duration?
    a) “I’ve learned Spanish.”
    b) “I’ve been learning Spanish.”

  4. Rewrite: Change to emphasize ongoing effort: “I cleaned the house today.”

  5. Compare: Explain why continuous fits: “Your eyes are red. Have you been crying?”

  6. Your reflection: Think of something you’ve been doing regularly lately. Write about it using this grammar.

Answer Key:
1. has been studying (shows ongoing effort leading to current exhaustion)
2. They’ve owned this house for ten years (ownership is stative, can’t be continuous)
3. (b) โ€” continuous emphasizes the ongoing process and time invested
4. I’ve been cleaning the house all day (shows duration and continuing effort)
5. Present evidence (red eyes) suggests recent continuous activity
6. Check: Does your sentence use have/has + been + verb-ing with time indicator?

The Lesson

Back at her desk, Luna closed her textbook with new understanding. “I haven’t just worked tonight,” she told Professor Wisdom. “I’ve been working for hours, and that’s why I’m so exhausted now.” The Professor smiled warmly. “Exactly. Marie Curie understood that the years of continuous effort mattered as much as the final discovery. Your grammar now captures both the duration of your effort and its connection to this present moment. That’s the power of showing not just what you did, but how long you’ve been doing it.”