Ongoing actions and states: ています

For many activities, te-form + います describes an action in progress. 今いま 本ほん を 読よんでいます means “I’m reading a book now.” This is similar to English “am/is/are …-ing” in this use.

With some verbs of change, it describes the resulting state. 結婚けっこん しています usually means “I’m married,” not “I’m getting married.” 知しっています means “I know,” not “I am knowing.” Do not automatically add English “-ing” to every translation.

Learn the meaning with the verb and the context. Reading commonly gives an ongoing action; being married and knowing someone give states. These are two important uses of ています, not an exception-free test based on how many seconds an action takes.