Choosing between simple present & present continuous

Asked Jan 18 '24 at 22:10

Active Jan 19 '24 at 23:23

Viewed 22 times

If I intend to ask about somebody's major of study, should I use Simple presents: what do you study? or present continuous: what are you studying?

I understand that the simple present tense is used for habitual actions, and the present continuous tense is used for actions happening around now.

While studying is a temporal action occurring around the present, it takes a considerable amount of time to be considered happening in the present moment, making it more likely to be habitual.

Please indicate the correct form and share why you chose it.

asked Jan 18 '24 at 22:10

Afaq Nafar

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Study is a general question, while studying is about this term or this minute in the library. – Yosef Baskin Jan 18 '24 at 22:29
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The idiomatic way is "What is your major?" – Barmar Jan 18 '24 at 23:01
"What do you study?" would be asked of someone who spends a lot of time dipping into various fields of study; one would ask a student "What are you studying?" – Edwin Ashworth Jan 18 '24 at 23:45
For that purpose, What are you studying? would be idiomatic. – Tinfoil Hat Jan 19 '24 at 02:33
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@Barmar - "What is your major?" would not be idiomatic in British English, as we don't use that expression for a student's main subject. – Kate Bunting Jan 19 '24 at 09:22
The actual question asks about somebody's major, so it's reasonable to assume "What is your major?" would fit. – Stuart F Jan 19 '24 at 09:51
An entomologist might answer "What do you study?" with "insects", but "What are you studying?" with "The ant colonies of Borneo". An entomology student might answer both questions with "entomology". – Barmar Jan 19 '24 at 16:00
Does this answer your question? Simple present, or present continuous? – livresque Jan 19 '24 at 23:23
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Does this answer your question? How to ask about someone's study? – Ben Mo Juan Feb 26 '24 at 01:22
Does this answer your question? Present Continuous vs Simple Present – Lambie Mar 27 '24 at 15:34

Choosing between simple present & present continuous

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