present perfect continuous

Passive Voice: Present Perfect Continuous

SÁNCHEZ GONZÁLEZ DANIEL

ALCARAZ PAZ JOSEPHINE

uses of the passive voice

The agent is unknown. We don't know who or what the agent is

- There is a man living down there on the first floor that has been being annoyed by our loud music.

We use the passive voice to emphasize the subject.

- It was he, the villain, who has been being sought after for his crimes against society.

We use the passive voice to talk about very general truths

- Dogs have been being looked after by humans for thousands of years.

uses of the passive voice

We use the passive voice if we want to be unclear or vague about the subject/subject.

- We aren’t sure what it was but usually, these things have been being dealt with seriously by the justice department.

We use the passive voice when the subject is irrelevant (we don't care who or what has caused the action).

- These issues have been being studied for centuries on end without any progress having been being made..

We use the passive voice in a more formal setting such as in a thesis or an important paper, for example, scientific papers.

- The second amendment has been being disputed for years now.

when we use the passive voice in present perfect continuous?

Like in the active voice, the present perfect-countinuous passive expresses and emphasizes the consequences resulting from a previous but incomplete action or state that began in the past and continues into the present but may or may not continue into the future. 

Also like in the active form, occurs most often in sentences that express actions that occurred recently and actions that continue up to the present.

Examples

• The toys have been being broken by the children.

• Too much pollution has been being dumped in the river.

• You have been being controlled by your parents.

• We have been being given bad advice.

The present perfect-continuous passive is periphrastic

Which means consisting of a “phrase of two or more words that perform a single grammatical function that would otherwise be expressed by the inflection of a single word.”

Verbs in the present perfect-continuous passive are formed by the present tense form of the verb have plus the past participle been and the present participle being followed by a past participle

- I have been being treated like dirt.

- You have been being counted twice.

 Affirmatives

Structure

s +have/has + been + being + past participle 

 Example

- The advanced classes have been being taught by Lisa for more than six years.

 Negatives

Structure

S + have/has + not + been + being + past participle   

Example

- The basic classes haven’t been being taught by Lisa for more than six yea

Interrogatives

Structure

Have/Has + S + been + being + past participle 

    

Example

- Have the advanced classes been being taught by Lisa for more than six years?

WH/Information questions

Structure

WH + have/has + S + been + being + past participle

 

Example

- Where has English been being taught by her recently?