Learn English – Present Perfect Continuous vs. Present Simple

meaningpresent-perfectprogressive-aspect

Do I clearly understand difference between this two sentences?

  1. "How long do you dance?" – As I understand I can use this sentence to ask a person about his expirience in dancing.

  2. "How long have you been dancing?" – As I understand it is good for case when someone is dancing in the club (right now) and I am asking him about how much time he is dancing there?

The question is: Can I use the second sentence in situation when I want to ask a professional dancer about years of his dancing expirience?

Best Answer

Your first question

How long do you dance?

sounds very weird to me. The only interpretation is the one in the comments: how long does your performance last?

Your other question

How long have you been dancing?

is the perfect form to ask someone who is dancing right now, and you want to ask how much time has passed since they have started dancing. USUALLY, sentences with the present perfect continuous express how long you have done something with no interruption.

However, you may want to ask a third thing:

How long have you danced? How long have you been a dancer?

This could be when you see a very good dancer, and you ask how many years of experience he has. Sentences with the present perfect express how long you have done something with interruptions.

A typical example is:

How long have you been studying English? I have been studying for 3 hours (continuously, with very little breaks)

How long have you studied English? I have studied it for 4 years (obviously, you have done other things too!)

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