We form the present perfect tense with the verb have and the past participle of the verb. The past participle is the same as the past simple (-ed) for regular verbs. For irregular verbs, it’s the form in the 3rd column.
We normally use the present perfect to talk about past events that have a connection with the present, for example, news or past experiences. We can also use the present perfect to talk about situations that started in the past but which are still true in the present. Check the grammar chart below:
We often use the present perfect with the words just, yet, already.
We use just in (+) sentences to say that something happened very recently (like minutes ago).
We use yet in (-) and (?) sentences. We put it at the end of the sentence.
We use already in (+) sentences to say that something happened before now (usually earlier than we expected).
We often use the present perfect to talk about past experiences in our lives. We don’t say when these experiences happened.
When we ask about someone’s life experiences, we often use the word ever.
When we talk about life experiences, we often use the words never or before.
We use the present perfect with the words how long, for, since to talk about actions or situations that started in the past and still continue or are still true now.
We use how long in questions to ask about the duration of an action or situation.
We use for + a period of time, e.g. for two weeks, for ten years, for ten days, for a few hours, etc.
We use since + a moment in the past (the beginning of a period of time), e.g. since I was born, since 10 o’clock, since last Wednesday, etc.
We use the present perfect, and not the present simple for actions or situations that started in the past and are still true now.
We use for… and NOT since…ago to introduce a period of time.
We're developing a NEW LEARNING PLATFORM with a subscription plan that includes additional features at an affordable price. One of those features will be PDF downloads. Learn more!
