Present versus Continuous Translation

Question

Salut!

Quick question here. I understand that this is the conjugation for prendre in the present tense, however the examples given all appear to be present continuous. For example: "You're learning French" is given instead of "You learn French." I'm just curious, is it common for present tense verbs to translate in a continuous sense like this?

(And if so, how would "Tu apprends le français" functionally differ from "Tu en train de apprendre le français"?)

Thank you for the clarification!

Cheers,

Chelsia

Accepted Answer

Tu apprends le français  --> You are learning french (ongoing continuous action - no timescale implied)
Tu es en train de apprendre le français --> You are "in the process of" (at that moment) of learning french.
Imagine that you are doing some homework and the 'phone rings. That may be an inconvenience because (at that moment) you were busy learning french.