PRESENT PERFECT 1. FORM present to have (have / has) + past participle (-ed / 3rd column irregular verbs)
REGULAR IRREGULAR
Affirmative He has worked. They have gone.
Negative He hasn’t worked. They haven’t gone.
Question Has he worked? Have they gone?
2. EXCEPTIONS IN SPELLING Exceptions in spelling when adding ed final e, add only –d after a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubled l as final consonant after a vowel is doubled (in British English) final consonant + y (but not vowel + y)
Example love – loved stop – stopped travel – travelled study – studied
3. USE OF THE PRESENT PERFECT A. Experiences: something happened in the past but the time is not important. Example: They have never travelled by plane. B. Actions that started in the past and continue up to the present. Example: I’ve loved chocolate since I was a kid.. C. Actions that were completed very recently. We use just (translated as “acabar de” + vb.) Example: He has just arrived. 4. TIME EXPRESSION A. PREPOSITIONS: They introduce a time expression and are usually placed at the end of the sencence. - For: introduces a period of time (durante) Example: She has lived in London for two years. - Since: introduces the starting point of the action (desde) Example: She has lived in London since 2009. B. ADVERBS - Ever, never, always: they are frequency adverbs, so they are placed before the past participle. Ever: “alguna vez”. It is used in questions and negatives. Examples: She has never been to France. Have you ever seen a ghost? We have always liked dogs. - Already, yet: They mean “ya” and “todavía”. They work as follows, Already takes the position before the past participle. Example: We have already seen that film. Yet appears at the end of negative (todavía) or interrogative (ya) sentences. Examples: They haven’t finished their homework yet. Have you seen that film yet? - Just: it comes before the past participle, forming the Spanish expression “acabar de + infinitivo” Example: The train has just left. 5. CONTRAST PAST SIMPLE – PRESENT PERFECT Past Simple - The time is definite. Emphasis on the action. I visited my grandparents yesterday. - The action is finished. We went to the cinema last night.
Present Perfect - The time is unknown. Emphasis on the result. My car has broken down. - The action is unfinished. I’ve been here since four o’clock.