Forum: ell.stackexchange.com
Tags: <usage><present-continuous>
Title: Is it possible to use 'present continuous' to give an instruction?
Question: M.swan PEU says "we often use  present tenses  to give instructions." Other grammar books say "the  simple present  is used to give instructions".   My question is, Can we use  present progressive  to give an instruction?   for example , 'You  are waiting  outside the bank until the manager arrives. Then you' re speaking  to him....

Answers:
sents: text: It is possible to use the present progressive (present continuous) tense to give instructions, but not in the ordinary sense.
text: Instead, when we use the present continuous to give instructions, we do so only to give a very strong command or order--or a humorous parody of such.
text: (However, it is also possible, and more common, to issue strong commands or orders with the simple present.)
text: The logic with the present continuous goes something like:
text: It is so certain you will do this, (or since you have no choice but to do this) I am going to describe it as an arranged act of the future.
text: You are walking in there
text: and you are telling her that she's fired!
text: Is that clear?
text: We commonly use the present continuous to refer to future time, and we especially use what we can consider a special instance of the present continuous form-- be going +
text: [full infinitive]
text: --for
text: this "strong command or order" purpose, with the logic being something like:
text: I am so certain you will do this, that it is the arranged future.
text: You are going (to march) up those stairs immediately, young lady, and clean your room like I told you to do yesterday!
answer_details: author: ell.stackexchange.com/users/11885/Jim Reynolds
score: 12
sents: text: One can say "You are to be waiting outside the bank" to give an instruction, but not simply "are waiting".
text: You are not to be driving home in the snowstorm, do you understand?
answer_details: author: ell.stackexchange.com/users/10264/Tᴚoɯɐuo
score: 3
sents: text: That depends what you mean by "instructions".
text: When you tell someone what to do -- whether it's an order or friendly advice -- you use an "imperative sentence".
text: Imperative sentences use the simple present.
text: "Run away!"
text: or "Insert knob A into hole B.
text: " This is what we normally think of when we talk about "instructions".
text: But you can use the word "instructions" in a broader sense to mean describing what someone should or will do.
text: In this case you are not using imperative sentences, but ordinary declarative sentences.
text: In real life, people giving instructions often mix the imperatives, which actually tell the person what to do, with declaratives, where they explain something.
text: Usually such declaratives are in the future tense.
text: Like: "Turn left into the parking lot.
text: You will see a gate in front of you and a metal box with a button.
text: Press the button.
text: The gate will open."
text: Note the first and third sentences there are imperatives but the second and fourth are declaratives.
text: Sometimes people use present continuous in such cases.
text: "Go through the third door.
text: You are standing in a big empty room.
text: The lights are flickering.
text: "
text: Etc.
text: I think this is relatively rare, but it's done.
answer_details: author: ell.stackexchange.com/users/803/Jay
score: 2
sents: text: The only scenario I can imagine where present progressive would be appropriate would be when the speaker is encouraging the listener to visualize the scene and mentally "act out" the instructions as they are given.
text: Even then, I would expect that only the first instruction would be presented this way.
text: Example: "Imagine your workplace.
text: You are standing outside your office door.
text: Turn right, then walk down the hallway past three doors on your left."
text: Even this is kind of a cheat, since the sentence with present progressive tense is not giving an instruction.
text: It's just establishing the precondition for the following instructions.
answer_details: author: ell.stackexchange.com/users/12474/Jesse
score: 2
sents: text: There are a couple of examples I can think of where the present progressive is very effectively an instruction:
text: The instruction "Go to London", which is also voiced like an order.
text: If your job involved travel your boss may say "You are going to London today".
text: That is not an order
text: but I think this is clearly still an instruction.
text: The instruction "Eat your greens" which, again, is also voiced like an order.
text: A parent, familiar with the behaviour of a fussy child could easily be heard to say "You are eating your greens today young man".
text: In this context it is an instruction and also perhaps a disguised order.
answer_details: author: ell.stackexchange.com/users/12658/Richard Towers
score: 2

Summary of the answers:
It is possible to use the present progressive (present continuous) tense to give instructions. For example,  if your job involved travel your boss may say "You are going to London today", or a parent may say "You are eating your greens today young man" to a fussy child. You may also say "You  are to be waiting  outside the bank" to give an instruction.
You can do this when encouraging visualization. Examples include 'you are going to London today' and 'you are eating your greens today'.