I am eating (as in right now) or the Present Progressive Tense or Present Tense ?
I thought I had this figured out but now I am too sure 
Example- A friend calls you on the phone and asks, what are you doing? You say, I am eating, reading, watching TV, etc. and that moment.
Do you answer this this with the Present Progrssive Tense-Estoy comiendo or the Present Tense-Yo comido? I thought it was the Present Progressive tense but I thought I have read where the PresentTense can also translate to I am eating.
3 Answers
You're right--many times the present tense can mean 1) present tense; 2) present progressive tense: 2) near future.
You can say. either phrase...
Estoy comiendo ensalada = I'm eating salad (as we speak)
Como ensalada = I'm eating salad (as we speak) / I eat salad (in general) / I'm going to eat salad (right now for dinner)
On the other hand, you'll never use something such as "Estoy estudiando español" when you want to say "I study Spanish" (Estudio español) but you aren't studying at the moment you say it.
The present progressive tense is used a lot less in Spanish. Only use it when you are actually performing a function. For use in the past you'd say something such as, "Estaba estudiando español cuando me llamaste."
I agree with Mariana. It's just not used as much in Spanish as it is in English. The present tense is so useful in Spanish!
In my opinion, I think it should be the present progressive tense, because if someone calls on the phone and you are "at that exact moment eating" and they ask you "¿Qué estás haciendo?" You would answer "En este momento, estoy comiendo."
