Present perfect simple or continuous?

[lucale]

Hello everybody,
in the book "English File" by Christina Latham-Koenig and Clive Oxenden, there is an exercise focused on making a sentence with the present perfect simple or continuous:

Sam/not study enough/recently

My fellow said me that the correct answer is:
"Sam hasn't been studying enough recently"

I know that "study" is an action verb, but there is a negative sentence and in my opinion the focus of the sentence is more on "enough" instead of "recently", so I would say:
"Sam hasn't studied enough recently".

Am I wrong?

 

[GoesStation]

Either tense is possible.

 

[TheParser]

NOT A TEACHER


Hello, Lucale:

Here is the opinion of my favorite grammarian.

1."Recently John has done his work regularly."

a. That is a fact.

2. "Recently John has been doing his work quite regularly."

a. The tone [feeling] of that sentence is praise.

3. "Recently John has been doing his work very slovenly [in a careless manner]."

a. The tone is one of censure [criticism].


Source: George Oliver Curme, A Grammar of the English Language (1931), Vol. II, page 376.

 

[jutfrank]

1."Recently John has done his work regularly."

a. That is a fact.

I don't think this is a good example. The adverb regularly doesn't go very naturally with the present perfect simple.

2. "Recently John has been doing his work quite regularly."

a. The tone [feeling] of that sentence is praise.

That's a much better example because the adverb regularly accords with the progressive aspect, reinforcing the idea of repeated action.

I think there is a tone of praise, but it comes from the generally agreed attitude that doing one's work is praiseworthy behaviour. That is, it comes directly from the meaning of the words, not from the grammar (i.e. aspect).

3. "Recently John has been doing his work very slovenly [in a careless manner]."

a. The tone is one of censure [criticism].

As post #4 notes, any interpretation of a tone of censure comes from the sense of the word slovenly. Again, there's nothing about the grammar in itself that carries a censorious tone. If slovenly were replaced with well, the tone would not be one of censure.

 

[TheParser]

NOT A TEACHER

Hello, Lucale:

Here is some information from a book that is used by many teachers and learners.


1. "I haven't been working very well recently."

a. The author writes that "We often prefer the present progressive to talk about more temporary actions" and situations.


2. "Harry has been working/has worked in the same job for thirty years."

a. The author says that the difference involves "a slight difference of emphasis."


Source: Michael Swan, Practical English Usage (1995 edition), item 420.6 on page 426.