PRESENT TENSE

Present Perfect

PRESENT PERFECT

Present perfect sentences must contain the auxiliary verb “have”.

Sentence structure:Subject + has/have + past

participle

PRESENT PERFECT

Subject + has/have + past participle

Examples She has gone to the mall. (singular)They have gone to the mall. (plural)

How is Present Perfect similar to Simple Past, Present & Past Progressive?

There is only ONE conjugation of the main

verb in both singular and plural sentences.

The auxiliary verb changes according to the number of

subject.

PRESENT PERFECT

Conjugation of past participle

Regular Verbs Examples

Add “-ed” to base form of verbs

• Talk + -ed Talked• Present + -ed Presented• Delay+ -ed Delayed

PRESENT PERFECT

Conjugation of past participle

Regular Verbs Examples

Add “-d” to base form of verbs (ending with “-e”)

• Update + -d Updated• Whine + -d Whined• Decide + -d Decided

PRESENT PERFECT

Conjugation of past participle

Irregular Verbs

Refer to irregular verb list @ http://www.englishpage.com/irregularverbs/irregularverbs.html

PRESENT PERFECT

3 Primary FunctionsFunction 1

Unspecified timeTo express something in the past when

We do not know when it happened Example: I have lost my keys When? You do not know exactly.

PRESENT PERFECT

3 Primary FunctionsFunction 1

Unspecified timeTo express something in the past when

The time of event is not important.Example: I have travelled to Australia.

When? Not the main point here.

PRESENT PERFECT

Function 1Unspecified timeThis is often confused with simple past

tense.The key is whether the time is

specified or not.

PRESENT PERFECT

I have travelled to Australia.

In this sentence, no time is specified.

I travelled to Australia in 2010.

In this sentence, time is specified.

“in 2010” can be replaced with “last year”, “this morning”, “when I was 10” etc.

Present Perfect Simple Past

PRESENT PERFECT

Function 2RepetitionTo describe something that has

happened several times in the past and is true even till now

PRESENT PERFECT

Function 2RepetitionExampleI have dined at Bosses thrice already.She has walked past that museum

countless times but has never gone in.

PRESENT PERFECT

Function 3To describe something that started in

the past, continues until now, and may or may not continue into the future

ExampleMy cousin has lived in Perth since

2005.

PRESENT PERFECT

Function 3To describe something that started in

the past, continues until now, and may or may not continue into the future

Present perfect tense can be replaced by present perfect progressive when you want to emphasize on the time/duration.

PRESENT PERFECT

I have waited for you for 10 minutes.

Neutral tone

I have been waiting for you for 10 minutes.

Time is emphasized Inference

The speaker is angry.

Present PerfectPresent Perfect Progressive

The duration does not need to be long to use PPP. The main point is that the speaker wants to

emphasize the duration.

PRESENT PERFECT

How to decide when to use Present Perfect and Simple Past?

If the sentence contains “for” or “since”, Present Perfect is used.

PRACTICE TIMEPresent Perfect