Unit 3. Present continuous and present simple (1)

Present continuous (I am doing) Use the continuous for something that is happening at or around the time of speaking. The action is not finished. - The water is boiling. Can you turn it off? - Let's go out. It isn't raining now. - I'm going to bed now. Geednight!

Present simple (I do) Use the simple for things in general or things that happen repeatedly. - Water boils at 100 degrees celsius. - Excuse me, do you speak English? - What do you usually do at weekends?

I always do and I'm always doing

Usually we say 'I always do something' (= I do it every time) :

• I always go to work by car (not I'm always going)

You can also say 'I'm always doing something', but this has a different meaning.

'I'm always losing things' does not mean that i lose things every time. It means that I lose things too often, more often than normal.
'You're always -ing' means that you do something very often, more often than the speaker thinks is normal or reasonable.

• You're always watching television. You should do something more active.
• John is never satisfied. He's always complaining.