Present Perfect- present perfect tense of English. This tense is used to denote events that have completed to date or have completed during the present time period. See below the rules for forming the Present Perfect, a list of auxiliary words and examples of using the present perfect tense in English.
Education Present Perfect
In affirmative sentences, the Present Perfect is formed by using the auxiliary word have (1st and 2nd person) or has (3rd person singular) and adding the ending -ed to the verb. If the verb is irregular, then the 3rd form is used - Past Participle.
Education formula:
Noun + have / has + verb ending in -ed or 3rd form
A noun and an auxiliary verb have can merge and form I’ve, they’ve, etc. Examples of affirmative sentences in the Present Perfect:
He has just finished playing football. — He just finished playing football.
They've started doing their homework already. — They have already started doing their homework.
To form a negative sentence in the Present Perfect, after the auxiliary verb, you must add the particle not. rule:
Noun + have / has + not + verb ending in -ed or 3rd form
An auxiliary verb can be combined with the not part to form have not or has not. Examples of negative sentences:
I have not seen you for years! - I haven't seen you for a long time!
She has not made her work yet. “She hasn't done her job yet.”
To form an interrogative sentence in the Present Perfect, the auxiliary verb must be placed before the sentence. rule:
Have / Has + noun + verb ending in -ed or 3rd form
Examples of interrogative sentences:
Has there ever been a war in the United States? — Was there ever a war in the United States?
Have you ever met him? -Have you ever met him?
Auxiliary words Present Perfect
When forming sentences in the Present Perfect, auxiliary words are often used. These present perfect marker words are given below:
Cases in which the Present Perfect is used
Below are various examples of using the Present Perfect tense that you may find useful.
I use case: Indefinite time before the present moment
Unspecified Time Before Now
The Present Perfect is usually used to describe something that happened relatively recently and at an inopportune time. The use of the following words such as yesterday, one year ago, last week, at that moment, that day, one day and others in the Present Perfect is prohibited, since when using this tense the emphasis is placed on the experience, and not on the time when the event occurred. In this case, the use of auxiliary words is used (see table above). examples:
I have been to France. — I was in France.
I think I have met him once before. “I think I met him once.”
Nobody has ever climbed that mountain. - No one has ever climbed this mountain.
You have grown since the last time I saw you. “You’ve grown up since I last saw you.”
James has not finished his homework yet. — Jace hasn't finished his homework yet.
Have you been to Mexico in the last year? — Have you been to Mexico in the last year? ('In the last year' (as opposed to 'last year') means 'in the last 365 days', so it is an indefinite tense, requiring the use of the Present Perfect)
I have seen that movie six times in the last month. — I saw this film six times last month. (The time is indicated here, but the emphasis is on how many times a person has seen this film.)
Use case II: the action takes place to this day
Duration From the Past Until Now (Non-Continuous Verbs)
The Present Perfect is also used with verbs that are not continuous (Non-Continuous Verbs) or with mixed verbs (Mixed Verbs). In this case, the present perfect tense describes an action that began in the past and is still ongoing. In this case, it is typical to use phrases like for five minutes, for two weeks, since Monday and others. examples:
I have had a cold for two weeks. — I’ve had a cold for two weeks now.
She has been in England for six months. — She has been in England for 6 months.
Mary has loved chocolate since she was a little girl. — Mary loves chocolate since childhood.
From the school desk, students are intimidated by the difficult to understand parts of English, which must be crammed, otherwise you will not communicate and understand the language even at a minimal level. In fact, the prim Englishmen have only three tenses, as in our great and mighty language: present, past and future. However, you should understand: each time has its own characteristics, in other words, types. In this article we will look at the present tense and its form Present Perfect Simple.
English present tense
The present tense in English has 4 types:
- Present Perfect.
- Present Simple.
- Present Perfect Continuous.
Exercises usually help to reinforce the complexities of using these forms. It should be understood that these are not isolated rules, they have a certain system. The main thing in studying is to understand the essence of each tense, when it needs to be applied in practice in writing, and when in live conversation.
Time formula
The name of the tense form Present Perfect Simple is translated as “present perfect tense”. The perfect form is one of the most used in communication by residents of England and America, although we hear it less often in the speech of the latter. This type of present tense is formed according to the following formula: auxiliary + main verb in 3rd form.
The third form for regular verbs is formed by adding and for irregular verbs there is its own form, which is usually given in dictionaries.
For example:
I have already cleaned my room. - “I have already cleaned my room” (the verb clean is correct).
He has already drunk his tea. - “He has already drunk his tea” (the verb drink is incorrect).
Thus, we can say that the present perfect tense is quite simple to form; the main thing is to know whether you are using the correct form of the verb or not.
The third part of the table in dictionary publications and textbooks contains the third form of the verb. For example: the verb be (translated as to be, to exist) has the following forms: be/was (were)/been.
Using the present perfect tense
Present Perfect Simple is used when it is necessary to express exactly the result of an action that has already been performed. With the help of this tense, attention is focused on the result and thus it is clear that the action has already been completed. We also use Simple when we talk about an action that happened in an unfinished period of time. Remember that the main thing for understanding the perfect is the connection with the present moment and the fact of completion of the action. For example: " I have already eaten watermelon." - I have already eaten melon. That is, we mean the result of the action itself, the actual result.
These two tense forms refer to the present tense, but have different meanings. Present Simple is used when talking about events that happen usually and every day. The main indicators for it are the following words: always (always), usually (usually), rarely (rarely), often (often). The Present Perfect expresses an action that has already been performed and has a certain result at the time of the speaker’s speech. Also, these two times have different formation formulas. The simple tense is used in live communication much more often than the perfect tense. He has many words - pointers, that is, words that directly say that it is necessary to use the perfect tense.
Difference between Present Perfect and Past Simple
When learning English, the question always arises of when to use the Present Perfect and when to use the Past Simple. It is necessary to understand the basic postulates of using these forms of time. The most important thing to remember is that “Past Simple” is the past tense, it talks about events that have already happened. “Present perfect” is the present tense, it talks about something that was started earlier and not yet finished, or finished, but has a relationship with today. Sometimes you can understand from the meaning of the text itself that it is the perfect that needs to be used. The time should be chosen depending on what needs to be said to the speaker, based on the situation that has arisen.
Timing Rules
If the situation or time period in question has ended and has no connection with the present, then “Past Simple” should be used. When using the Past Simple tense, this may mean that the person in question can no longer carry out any action. If you do not say in more detail in a conversation about the reason for choosing this time, then you might think that the person is no longer alive.
She always loved watching TV. - “She always loved watching TV” (meaning that she doesn’t watch TV anymore because she died).
She has always loved watching TV. - “She always loved watching TV” (she loved it before and still loves it).
Etymology of the word
The word perfect comes from the Latin language and is translated as “completion”, and the meaning of “perfection”, in the sense of the absence of flaws, acquired much later. In fact, the word perfect acquired the meaning of “flawless” by expanding its previous meaning, because something created is completed when it no longer has flaws. Perfect tenses are so called because they refer to actions that are completed relative to the present tense. For example: “I ate the bread” is an action that is currently completed. However, not every use of the present perfect tense is associated with the idea of completion. In fact, the perfect form exists in many European languages, including our Russian language.
English is not difficult. The rules are easy to remember and there are not many of them.
It's the turn of the Present Perfect Tense - the Present Perfect Tense.
Formation of the Present Perfect Tense
Present Perfect Tense is formed using the auxiliary verb have + (third column in the table of irregular verbs)Google shortcode
Pay attention to the formula for the formation of R.R.T. indicated in the table. As you can see, the Present Perfect Tense is formed with the help of a verb and a past participle, and the participle is a fixed, unchanging part of the formula, and the verb have changes depending on the person and number of the subject and acts as an auxiliary verb in a given tense.
When forming the interrogative form, the auxiliary verb have (has) is placed before the subject. When translating interrogative sentences, follow the established word order of the interrogative sentence: 1 – question word (for example, who? when? what?), 2 – auxiliary verb (have or has), 3 – subject, 4 – predicate (in this case, participle)
- Have you ordered pizza? -Have you ordered pizza? (there is no question word, so the question begins with have)
- Where has he put my glasses? – where did he put my glasses?
A question to the subject begins with the word Who?
- Who has painted this picture? – who painted this picture?
When is Present Perfect Tense used?
The present perfect tense, although it belongs to the group of present tenses, denotes an action that has already happened and has completed by now. This time is used when oneself is important fact of action.
- I have already bought bread - the action has already taken place, it does not matter when it happened - I have bought some bread
The action expressed by the Present Perfect is translated into Russian perfect past tense verb (What did you do?)
The time of the action is either not indicated at all, or covers a period of time that has not yet expired (that is, the period has not yet ended, but the action has already occurred ): Today ( today), this morning, afternoon or evening ( this morning/ afternoon/ evening), this week ( this week), this month ( this month), this year ( this year)
- Peter has washed his car today - Peter washed the car today (still today, but the car has already been washed)
- I have met her twice this week - This week I met her twice (the week is still going on, and I have already met her twice)
Often adverbs are used with the Present Perfect:
- I have already finished reading this newspaper.- I have already finished reading the newspaper
- Have you posted the letter yet? —Have you already sent the letter?
- The adverb already in questions conveys surprise and means not “already”, but “really... already.” Compare:
Has your brother arrived yet? “Has your brother arrived yet?” And
Has your brother arrived already? “Has your brother already arrived?” - Please note that the adverb yet always comes at the end of the sentence.
The verb to be is used in the present perfect tense to mean “to visit, go, visit” and is accompanied by the preposition of direction to:
- Have you ever been to London? -Have you ever traveled to London?
- I have been to Japan twice - I visited Japan twice
For and Since
Verbs in the Present Perfect Tense can also denote actions that began long before the moment of speech, but have not yet ended. In this case, verbs are used with such tense adverbs as for - during and since - since (as long as)
In this case, the verb is translated into Russian in the present tense:
- She has known my brother for five years - She has known my brother for five years
- I’ve known her sister since 1992 - I’ve known her sister since 1992
Present Perfect or Past Simple?
In Russian, verbs in both the Past Simple and Present Perfect are translated into past tense verbs, so it is sometimes difficult for English learners to determine which tense to use in a given situation. The following table will help you understand the difference between these two English tenses more clearly:
Many people call present perfect time a “tautology”. And it is not surprising, because an action committed in the past is called the present. Why and why? Switching to “you” with the Present Perfect is not difficult if every nuance of use, education and special cases is analyzed and understood in detail.
Let's start our acquaintance with the presentation, let's look into the depths of this shade. Like any tense in English, Present Perfect Tense reflects the action. But its specificity is that the action has already been completed, and we see the result from it. In this situation, we do not focus on When an event occurred, we are not interested in it, doesn't matter, but we are now talking about what it entailed and what it led to. For example:
Have you found the place on the map? —Have you found this place on the map yet? (We are not interested in: how much you searched, when you started; the result - whether you found it or not)
I can't walk. I think I have sprained my ankle. - I can't go. I think I sprained my ankle. (We don’t note, we are not interested in: when I sprained it, how I sprained it; the result is that I can’t walk).
Of course, this is the main characteristic or, as it is also called, function. We will consider all cases of use and comparison below.
Education
According to the rules for the Present Perfect, we will need auxiliary verbs has/ have, and we will put the semantic one in V 3 (V ed). We remember that all English verbs are divided into regular and irregular. To form this tense, we will add the ending -ed to the regular ones, and the irregular ones have a special form that will have to be learned (3rd column of the table of irregular verbs).
With 3rd person singular subject(if the subject is expressed by a pronoun or a noun implying: she, he, it) we use has. With everyone else - have. Negation is formed using “not”, which is placed after the auxiliary verb, and in the question have/has is interchanged with the subject. As you can see, there is no need to add or remove anything new, just some rearrangements in the sentence itself.
Short forms:
I have = I’ve, She has = she’s, we have = we’ve, they have = they’ve, you have = you’ve.
have + not = haven’t, has + not = hasn’t
Use
The present completed (perfect) tense has several uses in situations. Let's look at each one separately. All actions can be divided into completed and unfinished.
1. Action completed in the past(signal words are: already, yet, still, recently, lately, just).
- If the situation ended just now (before the moment of conversation), or earlier, and it is connected with the present , then this is the very case when you should use the Present Perfect. In other words, if the result is important to you, interesting and necessary for further conversation, which serves as a starting point, then here we use the present perfect tense. The exact moment is not specified.
He has already published your poem in a local paper. — He has already published your poem in the local newspaper.
I have recently bought this bycicle, but now it is broken. — I recently bought this bicycle, but now it is broken.
- To highlight the repetitive actions their repetition, with the words several times, twice. Also, this grammatical phenomenon occurs in complex qualifying sentences where ordinal numbers, superlative adjectives, and the phrase “the only” are used.
It is one of the happiest days I have ever spent with my mother. — This is one of the happiest days I have ever spent with my mother.
It is the only time my father has been away for holiday. - This is the only time when dad was not at the holiday.
My friends went to England again. They have been there several times. — My friends went to England again. They've been there several times already.
2. Action unfinished in the past(signal words are: this week, this year, today, this morning, since, for, never, ever).
- If we want to emphasize long period of time where the action we are interested in is not completed by the time of the conversation.
He has written two books this year. — He wrote two books this year (the year is not over yet).
Have you seen Mary this morning? —Have you seen Mary this morning?
- It is worth remembering that there are verbs that are not used in the Continuous (which can be read in our other article of the same name about non continuous verbs). With given stative verbs We use Present Perfect instead of Present Perfect Continuous. Very often in this situation the preposition is used for , which indicates the duration of the action.
I haven’t had a holiday for 4 years. — I haven’t had a vacation for 4 years.
My parents have been married for 25 years. — My parents have been married for 25 years.
- with the word "since", which indicates the last time before something (before conversation)
She has been off work since the accident. “She hasn’t worked since she had an accident.”
- with the circumstances “ever, never, always, all my life, so far” - which emphasize an indefinite period of time, incompleteness.
I have never driven a car. — I've never driven a car.
My brother has always dreamed of laptop. — My brother always dreamed of a laptop.
Have you ever gone to Italy? —Have you ever traveled to Italy?
They ate a lot yesterday but they haven’t eaten much so far today. - Yesterday they ate a lot, but today they haven’t eaten yet.
3. Quite rarely, but you can still find the Present Perfect in subordinate clauses with as soon as, before, till, until, after, when, which is used instead of the Future Perfect (in most cases it is replaced by the Present Simple, especially in colloquial speech)
We will give back your car as soon as you’ve found a new job. — We will give away your car as soon as you find a new job.
Comparison of times
We have already learned when the Present Perfect Simple is used and how it is formed (the word Simple is sometimes added, especially in English grammars, so that students do not confuse it with the Present Perfect Continuous). Everything seems to be clear. But when doing exercises and tests to formulate the required form of the verb, difficulties and mistakes often arise, and a mess forms in your head. The Present Perfect, Present Perfect Continuous, Past Simple, Past Perfect time table will help you place emphasis on the most important differences.
Present Perfect |
Present Perfect Continuous |
Past Simple |
Past Perfect |
| The result of the action is emphasized; it is noted how often, when the action was performed (how many?), the result is most often planned, since - last time | Emphasizes the duration of the action, how it proceeded; the result often acts as a side effect, since is the beginning of the action | ||
| I have done my duties about the house. Now we can have a rest. — I completed all the housework. Now I'm free. She hasn’t played the piano since childhood. — She hasn’t played the piano since childhood. |
I have been doing my duties about the house for 4 hours. Now I am too tired. — I did my housework for 4 hours. I'm too tired now.She hasn’t been playing the piano since I came in. “She hasn’t played the piano since I came in.” | ||
| Always talks about the present, action in the past as the engine of a new conversation, has no clear time boundaries, action is a result, life experience | Always speaks only about a past accomplished fact, the time is clearly indicated, the frame points to the past, a statement of fact, sequential actions | ||
| I have finished my work and now I am going home. — I finished work, now I’m going home.The boss has signed the documents. Can you post them at once? — The boss signed the documents. Can you send them immediately?Has the bus arrived? No, it hasn’t. — Has the bus arrived? - No. | I finished my work and went home. — I finished work and went home. The boss signed the documents and I posted them at once. — The boss signed all the documents, and I sent them immediately. Did the bus arrive yesterday? No, it didn't. — Did the bus arrive yesterday? - No. | ||
| Even if the action is completed, it must be connected with the present. In complex sentences, the main thing is in the Present. | The action was completed before a certain moment in the past, before another event, which is expressed by the Past Simple; in complex sentences the main action is in the past | ||
| I have washed my car! Look! It is clean. — I washed my car. Look. She's clean. The house is dusty Nobody has come there for a year. — The house is dusty. No one has entered there in a year. | I had washed my car before my mother woke up. I washed my car before my mom reminded me. The house was dusty Nobody had visited there for a year. — The house was dusty. No one has entered there in a year. |
Adverbs, adverbs or signal words in the Present Perfect
- So, the rules for the Present Perfect don't end there. It's also worth taking a moment to pay attention "since" and "for"
, which are sometimes very close in meaning and often set traps. Since is used as a starting point for when the action was last performed. Either it indicates an action that has ended, or parallel situations that lasted a certain period of time. For - with the present perfect is used to indicate how long the action took place, its entire duration:
since 8 o'clock, since 1987, since Christmas; for hours, for a week, for ages, for a long time
- Just and just now in Russian they convey the meaning just now. The first does not indicate exactly when the action occurred, the second notes: “a minute ago,” “literally a second.” With just now we use Past Simple.
- ever (ever) never (never - only in affirmative sentences), already (already - in affirmative, already - so soon - and questions), still (also in negative sentences), yet (still - in negative sentences, already - in interrogative sentences), lately (Lately), resently (recently, in recent years, months, weeks)
Even after considering all cases of use, their features and comparison, the grammar of the present perfect requires consolidation and solid assimilation. To begin with, you should read and analyze sentences with this tense, which you can read in the article “Examples of sentences in the Present Perfect,” then move on to the tasks that you will also find on our website.
The Present Perfect is very often used both in speech and in exams, tests, in other words - everywhere. That is why it is necessary to firmly grasp the basics of one of the most important tenses of English grammar.