Present Perfect vs present continuouse

[olegv]

Please explain to me the following. A grammar book says that the present continuous + for expresses a present situation continuing in the future and gives the following example in that context: We are staying here for another three months. The relevant practice exercice (following the rule) is the following: We won't be able to move back into our house for a while.

A Our tenants are living there for six months.
B Our tenants have lived there for six month."

The correct answer is A. Please explain to me whether "Out tenants are living there for si month" would mean (looking at the above rule) that our tenants are living in the house now and will be living for the next six month. I.e. the tenants did not leave before the speaker is saying that the tenants are living. Thank you.

 

[5jj]

A grammar book says that the present continuous + for expresses a present situation continuing in the future and gives the following example in that context: We are staying here for another three months. The relevant practice exercice (following the rule) is the following: We won't be able to move back into our house for a while.

A Our tenants are living there for six months.
B Our tenants have lived there for six month."

The correct answer is A. Please explain to me whether "Out tenants are living there for six month" would mean (looking at the above rule) that our tenants are living in the house now and will be living for the next six month. I.e. the tenants did not leave before the speaker is saying that the tenants are living.

I am not sure what you mean by the sentence I have underlined.

Our tenants are living there for six months.

This could mean that the tenants are living in the hous now, and:
either that the tenants have leased the house for a total of six months - the listener does not know how long they have occupied the house so far;
or that the tenants still have six months of the lease to run - the speaker could make this clear by adding 'another' or 'for the next' in front of 'six months'.

 

[olegv]

Thank you. I meant that the sentence does not imply the reference to the past and that's why the present cont (rather than present perfect) is used. Am I right? Thanks

 

[5jj]

Thank you. I meant that the sentence does not imply the reference to the past and that's why the present cont (rather than present perfect) is used. Am I right? Thanks

It does not, in itself, imply past living, but it does not preclude it.

 

[Kotfor]

Please explain to me whether "Out tenants are living there for si month" would mean (looking at the above rule) that our tenants are living in the house now and will be living for the next six month. I.e. the tenants did not leave before the speaker is saying that the tenants are living. Thank you.

This is just what we should remember. Present Continuous doesn't refer to actions in the past. It may refer to the future or present. In this case it refers to the future. On the other hand Present Perfect refers to actions in the past.

This confusion is very common for russian/ukrainian speakers as these sentences Our tenants are living ... versus Our tenants have lived.. translated into Russian sound identical and may refer both to the present or past.

 

[olegv]

This is just what we should remember. Present Continuous doesn't refer to actions in the past. It may refer to the future or present. In this case it refers to the future. On the other hand Present Perfect refers to actions in the past.

This confusion is very common for russian/ukrainian speakers as these sentences Our tenants are living ... versus Our tenants have lived.. translated into Russian sound identical and may refer both to the present or past.

Thank you. Could you please have it translated in Russian for me.

 

[Coolfootluke]

Please explain to me the following. A grammar book says that the present continuous + for expresses a present situation continuing in the future and gives the following example in that context: We are staying here for another three months. The relevant practice exercice (following the rule) is the following: We won't be able to move back into our house for a while.

A Our tenants are living there for six months.
B Our tenants have lived there for six month."

The correct answer is A. Please explain to me whether "Out tenants are living there for si month" would mean (looking at the above rule) that our tenants are living in the house now and will be living for the next six month. I.e. the tenants did not leave before the speaker is saying that the tenants are living. Thank you.

I am not a teacher.

I see your problem. That is, I see a problem. I would say that A is unnatural. Everybody I know would feel they had to use "Our tenants will be living there for six months" to be clear. I think that you have found a case where the present continuous cannot be used as a future tense. The setup (We won't be able to move back into our house for a while) makes it so that the reader (or listener) hears the verb as present tense, because the tenants actually are living there right now, and that is sufficient reason why you can't move back. "For six months" comes out of left field unless it is set up with a real future tense or you make it "the next six months".