focus
noun
a central point, as of attraction, attention, or activity.
had been focusing
-
past perfect progressiveof focus.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As a result, the company had been focusing on improving profits by keeping down costs—including wages—while sales stagnated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 17, 2025
A hit came back identifying one of those make and models belonging to Heuermann, who lived in a neighborhood police had been focusing on because of cellphone location data and call records, authorities said.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 4, 2023
The company had been focusing more on energy efficiency and practical features such as safety and storage space in its marketing in China to lure more pragmatic buyers.
From Reuters ● Mar. 21, 2023
The 29-year-old had been focusing on the 200m in the build-up to the Games but failed to reach the qualifying time.
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2021
Mom started to understand that she had been focusing on what other people might think of her new baby.
From "Ugly" by Robert Hoge
