Present Perfect Tense

Spring has already arrived

Present Perfect TenseFORM: have / has + past participle

Affirmative: I have seen the film before.

She has seen the film before.

Interrogative: Have you seen the film before?

Has she seen the film before?

Negative: They haven’t seen the film before.

He hasn’t seen the film before.

1- Recent events: It is used to describe recent events without a definite time. We use just in positive sentences to say that something happened very recently.

Present Perfect TenseUses of the present perfect

Why are they so happy?

They have just won a prize so they are really pleased.

Present Perfect Tense

2- Personal experiences: It is used to express personal experiences, there is not a definite time given. The time expressions ever and never are very often used with this meaning

Have you ever been to Japan?

No, I’ve never been there.

Present Perfect Tense3- It is used to express actions which started in the

past and are still continuing in the present, the time period is not finished.

I have lost my keys.

(And I haven’t found them yet.)

Present Perfect Tense

• We often use the present perfect tense with already and yet.

Already: Something happened before now or earlier than expected

You can use already in positive sentences. Put already before the main verb.

Yet: Until now.

You can use yet in negative sentences and questions. Yet is usually at the end.

Example: A) Have you done your homework yet?

B) No, I haven’t done it yet. / Yes, I’ve already done it.

Note the difference

• They have gone to the cinema. (This means that they

haven’t come back yet. They are still at the cinema.)

• She has been to London. (This means that she has

visited London; she’s not there now. She’s come back.)

Contrast between Present Perfect and Past Simple

We use definite expressions with the Past simple tense: yesterday, last week, … ago, etc, while we don’t use definite time expressions with the Present perfect tense.

• I have been to France three times.

• When did you go there?

I went there last Summer.

Look at this conversation:

A: Have you ever been to the USA?

B: Yes, I have.

A: When did you go there?

B: I went to New York in 1996.

Now ask and answer questions as in the example:

• plant a tree (Where)

• meet a politician (Who)

• travel by boat (When)

Present Perfect + Superlatives

• We often use a superlative with the present perfect.

That is the smallest house I have ever seen.

Make sentences as in the example. • It / noisy city / I be to• He / interesting person / meet• It / bad book / I / read