The present continuous or the present progressive is used to desribe an action that is occuring right now, in the moment of speaking.It is like the the simple present tense, but is formed using the verb 'to be' and the present participle '-ing' in english.So, for example,'I am speaking' this is made up of 'I am' the first person singular of 'to be' and the present participle 'speaking'It is exactly the same in spanish:Use 'estar' : estoy i am estás you (sg) are está he/she/it is estamos we are estáis you (pl) are están they are+ infinitive minus '-ar' + '-ando' or '-er/-ir' + 'iendo'Back to the original example: 'I am speaking' In spanish this becomes 'estoy' + 'habl-' + 'ando' 'estoy hablando'For an '-ir/-er' example: 'estoy comiendo' 'I am eating'