In what cases is the present perfect used? Present Perfect - Present perfect tense: education, use, forms, exercises

Good day to you, dear friends! Today I will tell you about the “Present Perfect Tense in English”. In Russian, you will not find an analogue to this grammatical structure and therefore it may seem that understanding the rules of application is not easy. But that's not true.

From this article you will learn:

Rule and examples

Time group Perfect- This is the third main group of tense verb conjugations in British.

If we talk about the analogy with Russian, then we translate Perfect.

There is only one important rule to remember:

The present perfect tense in English is used only when you want to focus attention not on the action itself, but on its result.

And if the result of an action can be observed in the present, then this will be The Present Perfect Tense.

They also say that “the result is obvious.”

Let's look at examples and you will see that in practice it is easy to separate the perfect from the ordinary past:

1. I have already cooked breakfast. — I have already prepared breakfast.
2. I washed up yesterday. — I washed the dishes yesterday.

There's a noticeable difference between these two examples, isn't there? The first example is the Present Perfect. You probably noticed that although the translation sounds like an event in the past, it corresponds to the past perfect in Russian. While in the second statement we use the imperfect.

Let's state the facts

First of all, I propose to consider the rules for composing affirmative sentences in Perfect. As usual, we preserve the direct word order and reduce it to the form:

Person + predicate + object + adverbial tense.

Compare the sentences in perfect English and try to draw a conclusion:

You, of course, noticed a pattern: the predicate consists of two words: have - auxiliary, in a suitable form, and the main one, conveying the meaning of the statement, with the ending ed. In the times of the Perfect group, we always use the semantic word in the third form; in British it is called Participle II. For regular verbs- this is initial + ed.

For irregular ones, the appropriate meaning can be taken from the third column of the table of irregular verbs, which is in any dictionary.

We complete tasks without errors

Often in tests and quizzes you can find exercises where you need to open the brackets and put the word in the correct tense form.

Among the proposed tasks, choosing Progressive will be helped by time circumstances or clarifying sentences that are a consequence of the main one. Let's practice:

Example:

She already (close) the window. – She has already closed the window.

1. We already (discuss) this article.
2. I (watch) this film, and I don’t like it.
3. My friend (explain) me the way and I came in time.

If you complete the task correctly, then have/has and the ending ed will appear in each line for the words in brackets.

We ask about the results

Use the present perfect tense to formulate interrogative sentences makes sense when you want to know its result, and not just “WAS IT OR NOT”.

Have you ever been in Moscow?

In this case, the scheme of the proposal corresponds to the scheme of the general question:

Helper + subject + predicate

Please note that the predicate remains unchanged - V3.

Regret or pride

Negation in the Perfect usually suggests that the speaker is sorry or proud that something did not happen. And again, what is meant is not the action itself, but the consequence:

I have never visited New-York.
She has not (hasn’t) read this book.

Have you noticed the peculiarity of constructing negation in the perfect tense? Namely, never or not can be used for negation - as in other tense groups. In the first case, the negative word is translated as a double negative “never”, but in British both of these negatives cannot be present in the same part of the statement, so we choose only one.

The Present Perfect Tense is often found in oral speech and therefore, in order to easily apply it, exercises in englishdom courses will be indispensable. Classes with a Russian-speaking teacher and native speaker. Mobile application, conversation clubs for practice. One-on-one lessons with a teacher. The cost of one lesson is 590 rubles.

In writing, indicators of our grammatical form are: already, ever, never, yet. When you come across such words in the test, you can be sure that you have a perfect conjugation in front of you.

New ones will help you determine which time group your proposal belongs to: present, past or future.

Subscribe to my blog, find even more useful articles and rules, and you will also receive as a gift, completely free, an excellent basic phrasebook in three languages, English, German and French. Its main advantage is that there is Russian transcription, so even without knowing the language, you can easily master colloquial phrases.

I was with you, Natalya Glukhova, I wish you a good day!

After studying Past, Present and Future Simple, this topic will seem very complex and incomprehensible. As soon as you translate this time into Russian, panic begins. How can one time unite the past and the present? This is precisely the essence of this time. Let's look at the simplest example:

I have broken my leg. - I broke my leg.

As you can see, the speaker does not give an exact date and time, but simply talks about the fact that in the past he broke his leg and is currently in a cast.

Present Perfect (present perfect tense) is formed thanks to the verb have, which appears as an auxiliary verb and participle perfect form. These are the forms that are located in the 3rd column of irregular verbs.

Have (has) + V3.

If you carefully examine the formula, it becomes clear that the past participle is an unchanged part in the sentence, but have (has) will change depending on the person and number of the speaker. In any tense, including the Present Perfect, the rules must be taught in such a way that you can remember them at any time. If you memorize the above diagram, then no problems will arise in solving the exercises. But we shouldn’t stop at one scheme, so let’s move on.

Present Perfect: rules and examples

This time marks the action that has completed at the time of the story. The difficulty of perceiving the Present Perfect tense is that when translating a sentence into our language, verbs indicate the past tense. You should not miss the point that the verbs being translated refer to the present tense, since they are connected with the result of the action performed. Based on this, it is concluded that the action in the Present Perfect was performed in a certain period of time, which is not indicated in the sentence and is not so important.

All rules concerning the Present Perfect state that in this time it is strictly forbidden to use words indicating a specific past time:

At that moment;

Such time circumstances are used only in Past Simple. But in the Present Perfect, the rules allow the use of helping words that indicate this time:

Many or several times;

Eg:

I have run into him several times in the summer camp. “I ran into him several times at summer camp. (That is, the speaker saw the person, but does not name a specific date and time).

It is worth noting that the rules characteristic of the Present Perfect are most difficult for beginners to learn English. Let's try to understand them in more depth.

When is this tense used?

This tense expresses the following concepts:

I have been to Italy.

Here the speaker means that he has already been to Italy. This means he has experience traveling to this country.

2. Changes that occurred over a period of time.

He has grown a beard since the last time I saw him.

This example shows an action that occurred in a certain period of time. The speaker did not see the other person for a certain period of time, and by the time of the meeting he had already grown a beard. In such sentences, the second verb is used in the Past Simple (saw) form.

3. Achievements.

Our son has learned to play piano.

This sentence indicates the guy’s achievements, but at what time he achieved this is not indicated.

4. Unfulfilled but expected action.

Nick has not arrived yet.

That is, the process is still ongoing, and its completion is expected. The sentence is about a guy who at the time of the dialogue has not yet arrived, but soon he will arrive and the process will be completed. Pay attention to the last word yet. At the beginning of studying the topic, it was said that the Present Perfect tense has its own helper words. This word is one of them. It already serves as a signal that this sentence refers to the Present Perfect Tense.

5. Several actions in the past.

The team has led the game 5 times so far.

In this example, it is clear that the team has played games 5 times so far, but at the time of the story it is still continuing the game.

In the Present Perfect tense, the rules allow the use of the following tense adverbials:

This week (month).

Present Perfect or Past Simple

Present Perfect, Past Simple - the rules for using these tenses are completely different. If in the first case the action that occurred has a connection with the present time, then in the second there is no connection. In the Past Simple the auxiliary verb is did, and in the Present Perfect it is have or has. In the first case, time plays no role. What is important here is the result or the fact that the action was completed. In the second, only the time when the action occurred is important.

Below are examples of the use of these tenses:

Present Perfect Continuous Simple. Rules of use

Present Perfect Continuous Simple implies a certain process that began in the past time and is still ongoing at the time of the story. To put it simply, this is an action that began in the past tense and by the time of the conversation has either just ended or is still in progress.

How is the Present Perfect Continuous Simple formed?

Affirmative sentences:

I have been reading.

Interrogative sentences:

Have I been reading?

Negative Suggestions:

I have not/haven’t been reading.

To indicate this time, you need to put the verb to be in the Present Perfect (have been or has been). Then the participle is added to it. To get it, you need to add the ending -ing to the initial form of the word.

Cases when this tense is used:

1. The process began in the past and by the time of the conversation is not completed, but continues.

2. An action that began in the past lasted a certain amount of time, and by the time of the conversation it had already ended.

Even though this is a rather complex topic, you should not give up. English grammar is not “Chinese grammar”. You just need to be careful when studying this topic, analyze examples, perform exercises of varying complexity, and remember the rules. Only then will you be able to master the entire grammar of the English language.

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 subject in 3rd person singular (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, such a grammatical phenomenon occurs in complex qualifying sentences where ordinal numbers are used, superlative adjectives, the phrase “the only”.

It is one of the happiest days I have ever spent with my mother. - This is one of the most happy days, which 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 state 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 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.

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 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, for last years, months, weeks)

Even after considering all cases of use, their features and comparing them, 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.

The concept of present tense in English does not always coincide with ours. One of the most striking examples of such a difference is the Present Perfect.

In this article we will understand what the Present Perfect is, how it is formed, in what cases it is used, what rules it obeys, and we will consolidate our knowledge with real examples of sentences with translation.

What is Present Perfect Tense?

Present Perfect Tense (Present Perfect) is the present perfect tense in English. It denotes an action that was completed in currently time.

This is the main difficulty of the Present Perfect tense for students. In Russian there is no tense similar to the Present Perfect. For us, if something happens now, it is the present, and if it has happened, it is already the past.

But not for the British. They perceive time a little differently. According to the logic of native speakers, the action may well end in the present or close to the present moment. The Present Perfect exists to express such a connection between the past and the present.

Because of these features in the understanding of actions and time, the Present Perfect is usually translated into Russian as a verb in the past tense.

I have already done my homework - I have already done my homework

This example uses the Present Perfect tense (have done) because we are talking about the fact that the action (working on homework) ended very recently.

But we translate the sentence into Russian using the past tense (already done).

How is the Present Perfect formed?

The Present Perfect tense is formed using the auxiliary verb have / has and Past Participle (the third form of the semantic verb: V3).

The auxiliary verb changes depending on the subject:

• I / You / We / They → have (for 1st, 2nd person and forms plural)
• She / He / It → has (for 3rd person singular)

The construction of the Present Perfect tense is completed by a semantic verb in the third form (V3).

If the semantic verb is of the correct form, then its third form (V3) is formed using the ending -ed.

If the semantic verb is irregular, then we take its third form (V3) from the table of irregular verbs.

For example:

• to try → tried (try) to cook → cooked (cook) to finish → finished (finish)
• to get → got to keep → kept to see → seen

Statement:

An affirmative sentence in the Present Perfect is formed using the auxiliary verb have / has and the semantic verb with the ending -ed for regular verbs or the third form of an irregular verb (V3) according to the formula:

• I / You / We / They + have + Ved (V3)
• She / He / It + has + Ved (V3)

I have decided - I decided

You have played - You played

He has done - He did

It has turned on - It turned on

In sentences and everyday speech You can often find a shortened form of the auxiliary verbs have / has. It is formed by adding ‘ve (for have) or ‘s (for has) to the subject:

• I have = I've
• You have = You've
• We have = We've
• They have = They've

• She has = She's
• He has = He's
• It has = It's

I’ve done my tasks - I completed my tasks

He’s washed the dishes - He washed the dishes

Negation:

Negative sentences in the Present Perfect are formed by adding the particle not after the auxiliary verb have / has, but before the main semantic verb. The formula looks like this:

• I / You / We / They + have not + Ved (V3)
• She / He / It + has not + Ved (V3)

I have not done my homework - I didn’t do my homework

They have not come - They did not come

She has not finished her tasks - She did not complete her tasks

It has not turned on - It did not turn on

In negation, the particle not can be shortened by joining it to the auxiliary verb have / has:

• Have not = haven’t
• Has not = hasn’t

I haven’t washed my hair - I didn’t wash my hair

She hasn’t been to London yet - She hasn’t been to London yet

Question:

An interrogative sentence in the Present Perfect is formed by placing the auxiliary verb have / has at the beginning of the sentence. The formula will be like this:

• Have + I / You / We / They + Ved (V3)
• Has + She / He / It + Ved (V3)

Have I bought all the presents? - Did I buy all the gifts?

Have you finished the classes? -Have you finished your classes?

Has she just arrived home? - Has she just arrived home?

Has it turned on? - Did it turn on?

Special questions are formed using question words ( question words). Such as when (when), how (how), what (what), where (where) and others. The following is the same word order as in the question.

• QW + have + I / You / We / They + Ved (V3)
• QW + has + She / He / It + Ved (V3)

What has he just said? - What did he just say?

How long have you been knocked on the door? - How long have you been knocking on the door?

When is the Present Perfect used?

Now let’s look at the most common cases of using and using the Present Perfect tense in speech:

• Completed action in the present

In this case, the emphasis is on the result of the completed action. In other words, when the result of an action is visible in the present.

I have cooked a good dinner - I prepared a good dinner (the action is completed, the result is a good dinner)

I know Nina. We have already met - I know Nina. We have already met (the meeting took place in the past, but we are interested in the result in the present)

• Unfinished action in the present

The Present Perfect tense is used when we describe an action that began in the past, has not yet ended in the present, but the result is obvious.

I’ve written five pages of the new book this morning - I wrote five pages of a new book this morning (the morning is not over yet, he can write a few more pages)

She has finished watching “Harry Potter” this week - She finished watching “Harry Potter” this week (the week is still going on, but she has already finished watching the film)

• Fact of action / personal experience

If it is important for the speaker to emphasize the fact of some accomplished event without an exact indication of the time, the Present Perfect also comes to the rescue. This tense is often used when we talk about our past experiences or when we ask our interlocutor about it.

I have been to Bratislava - I was (was) in Bratislava

In a question when we are interested in a fact from someone’s life, we also use the Present Perfect:

Have you ever been to France? -Have you ever been to France?

Present Perfect tense markers

Present Perfect is used with imprecise expressions and words that indicate a period of time that has not yet ended

• never (never)
• ever (ever)
• already (already)
• yet (yet) / not yet (not yet)
• often (often)
• lately (lately)
• just (just now)
• once (once)
• recently (recently)
• before (before)
• today (today)
• this week (this week)
• this year (this year)
• for an hour (within an hour)
• for a long time (long time)
• since two o’clock - from two o’clock
• ince December – from December

Examples of Present Perfect sentences with translation

Affirmative:

I’ve studied English since my childhood - I have studied English since childhood

She has visited this beauty shop recently - She recently visited this cosmetics store

People have walked on the Moon - People walked on the Moon.

We’ve just eaten, so we don’t want to go to the cafe - We just ate, so we don’t want to go to the cafe

I have just cut my finger - I just cut my finger

Negative:

He has not returned from school yet - He has not yet returned from school

I haven’t bought the new car. This is my old one - I didn’t buy a new car. This is old

Jane hasn’t been to Asia yet - Jane has not yet been to Asia

I have not been at university this week because of the flu - I was not at university this week because of the flu

I haven’t replaced the batteries in the doorbell - I did not replace the batteries in the doorbell

Interrogative:

Have you seen this film about space? -Have you seen this film about space?

Has Jimmy bought the tickets yet? - Jimmy already bought tickets?

How many deals has she made at the moment? - How many deals has she concluded so far?

How much coffee have you drunk today? - How much coffee did you drink today?

How long have you known Mary? - How long have you known Mary?

There are tenses in English that are not in Russian. They are the main “culprits” of grammatical difficulties. These include the Present Perfect - the Present Perfect tense.

Education

Before turning to the question of when the Present Perfect Simple is used, it is appropriate to briefly consider the meaning and “structure” of this tense. It is translated into Russian as the Present Perfect tense. Its main function is to describe events that occurred in the past, but have been completed by now and their result affects the present day.

The Present Perfect tense is formed using two verbs. First - auxiliary have, which is “valid” only for I (I), you (you), we (we), they (they) or has - for he (he), she (she), it (it).

The second is the main verb in the 3rd form. In English, the 3rd form of regular verbs is created by adding the ending -ed to the word stem (to wish - wished, to blame - blamed, to clean - cleaned). Irregular Verbs don't "require" rules. The third form can always be found, respectively, in the third column in the table of irregular verbs.

The Present Perfect tense can be used instead of the Present Perfect Continuous to describe events that began in the recent past and continued until the present minute. This happens when the main verb belongs to the verbs of the state (to respect - to respect, to adore - adore), which are not used in the Continuous aspect (long).

Table: Present Perfect formation with regular and irregular verbs

Cases of using the Present Perfect

As can be seen from the table, the Present Perfect tense is translated into Russian using verbs in the past tense. The same thing happens with the translation of sentences used in the Past Simple (Simple Past) and Past Perfect (Past Perfect): we again translate them with verbs in the past tense. At first glance, there is no logic. But it is there. Only the rules can explain it Present usage Perfect:

• To describe events that happened not so long ago and have ended by now. In this case, the exact period of what happened is not determined, it is blurred, since it has no meaning. The point is different - in the end.

Have you ever watched The Lord of the Rings? - Have you ever watched “The Lord of the Rings”? (It doesn’t matter when the event happened, the main thing is whether you watched this film or not)

• For a description that has ended, but the time period in which the event occurred has not ended(this year (this year), this week (this week), today (today), ever (ever) and others):

This week I have not visited my grandmother - This week I did not visit my grandmother (A week is a period of time that has not yet ended).

• To express an action that was performed in the recent past, but its result is important for the present moment:

I have lost my key. I cannot open the door. - I lost my keys. I can not open the door. (The action happened in the past, but the result of losing the keys affects the present).

• To describe repeated actions:

He has cleaned this room twice today - He cleaned the room twice today.

Present Perfect time markers (already - already, ever, never, just - only and others) are the best helpers when choosing a grammatical structure.

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