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PUBLISHER'S NOTICE
Do you struggle with the present perfect tense in English? If you do, you are not alone!
Millions of English learners struggle with this tense. That’s because it either doesn’t
exist in their language -OR- if it does exist in their language, it’s used differently than it’s
used in English. My goal is to make this tense easy for you. So, I’m going to show you
how to make it and explain when to use it. Once you learn the patterns, everything will
start to make sense. Let’s begin!
That’s easy!
First, let’s look at how we combine has/have with the subject of the sentence
You have You’ve You have not You haven’t You’ve not
She has She’s She has not She hasn’t She’s not
You guys have **You guys’ve You guys have You guys **You guys’ve
not haven’t not
They have They’ve They have not They haven’t They’ve not
First, “you guys’ve” & “you guys’ve not” are awkward in writing, but OK in spoken,
informal English. Next, another way of addressing multiple people is “you all.” I tend to
use “you guys,” but in a more formal situation, I would say “you all.” And, finally, ya’ll,
which is the contraction of “you all” is more common in other regions of the US (like in
the south), but I use it sometimes just for fun.
But what if the subject is a noun like doctor, Jack, or school? Can we still use
contractions with something like that?
YES!!
On the next page, we’ll talk more about contractions and how to use them.
** Some verbs are irregular in past participle form. Unfortunately, there are no rules to
determine which verbs are regular and which ones are irregular. This is information you
simply have to memorize.
Examples:
Native speakers love to contract the present perfect whenever possible to make their
speech faster. So, if we can contract it, we do!
Examples:
Example:
This is wrong!
Native speakers use contractions a lot! It helps us speak faster and sound natural.
However, some contractions that are OK in spoken English are not OK in writing!
Here’s an example…
Saying “scientists’ve” is OK, but this isn’t something you should write. It just looks weird!
Instead, you should write “scientists have.”
Examples:
These sentences are grammatically correct, but in spoken English they sound weird.
Contractions!
TIP: Native speakers often avoid using contractions when they want to emphasize
something.
IMPORTANT: If you are writing an academic essay for a college class, n ever use contractions. This is
considered informal and inappropriate in academia. Only use contractions in school if you are writing
an informal essay, anecdote, story, or something of that nature. On the other hand, contractions are OK
in business writing, but use them sparingly. The more formal your communication, the less you should
use contractions. Personally, I use contractions quite a bit in my business emails. Businesses aim to
connect with people, and in order to do that, you have to be “personable.” Having a relaxed, casual
tone in business communication makes you more relatable and builds trust. Of course, if the company
you work for has different standards, you should follow those. In general, though, western companies
are becoming more and more “casual” in their communication.
The most important thing to remember about the present perfect is that it connects the
past and the present.
Now, let’s talk about the 7 most common ways we use this tense.
1. To talk about things that happened or started in the past and continue today
2. When we don’t care to emphasize when exactly something happened
3. To talk about achievements
4. To talk about things we expect to happen that have not happened yet
5. To talk about something that has changed over time
6. To talk about life experiences
7. To talk about something that just happened
This means he became a manager 7 years ago and is still a manager today.
This means I got sick some time in the past and I’m still sick today. It could also mean
that I keep getting sick again and again. Maybe I got a cold for a week, then it healed.
Two days later I got a sore throat. When that healed, I suddenly got an ear infection.
This sentence means I went to Spain twice in the past, but I’m not emphasizing when
exactly I went. If I wanted to emphasize when I went, I would say something like “I went
to Spain twice, once in 2014 and once in 2016.”
Here, I’m telling you that I had three exams, but you don’t know when exactly I had
them. Maybe I had all three on Monday. Or maybe I had one on Monday, one on
Tuesday, and one on Wednesday. Also, maybe I will have more! In contrast, if I say, “I
had three exams this week,” I’m implying that they are finished and I won’t have any
more.
Achievements
Now, if Meryl Streep won three Oscars in the past… why don’t I just say she won them!
Why do I use the present perfect tense? Well, this is because Meryl Streep is still an
actress and makes lots of movies, so she may win more. Her accomplishment is not
necessarily over.
But, if we were talking about Katharine Hepburn, we would say she won 4 oscars. Why?
Because she’s no longer alive and can’t win any more Oscars. Since her achievements
are “finished, ” we would use the simple past tense.
Let’s say you did a job interview last Sunday and I ask, “Hey! Did you get the job?” You
might say, “I don’t know. I haven’t heard from the company yet.” This means you are
expecting a call, but it has not happened yet.
We all expect scientists to eventually find a cure for cancer, but (as far as we know) it
hasn’t happened yet.
This means I started the diet in the past, I continue to follow it in the present, and my
body has changed over time while on the diet.
In contrast, if someone says, “I lost a lot of weight on the keto diet,” they are implying
that they no longer follow this diet.
Life experiences
We use the present perfect to talk about things we have done & things we have never
done. You will often hear questions like this...
This is something a teacher would say to conclude a lesson. She says “as you have
seen” because you just saw it.
BONUS TIP #1: The present perfect is often used to talk about questions you’ve
had for a while that you still have.
BONUS TIP #2 : The present perfect is often used to emphasize a result rather
than the action it took to get that result.
I didn’t tell you that I ate a whole box of donuts and that’s why I have a stomach ache.
I’m emphasizing the result, not the behavior that created the result.
Here, I didn’t tell you that she never studied and that’s why she failed the test. Again,
I’m emphasizing the result of someone’s actions, not the actions themselves.
As you have seen, the present perfect is used to communicate several specific ideas.
However, we can often combine many of these ideas in ONE sentence.
“I’ve been a teacher for over 10 years and have worked with hundreds of
students all over the world.”
Ready to practice?
Here are several sentences for you to read and an analyze. Think about the meaning of
each sentence and what the present perfect tense is trying to communicate.
Let’s talk about the difference between the following sentence pairs:
1. They cannot grow the business until they get some investors.
2. They cannot grow the business until they have gotten some investors.
1. I’ll let you know your score after I grade the test.
2. I’ll let you know your score after I’ve graded the test.
1. We will not accept the offer until they agree to our conditions.
2. We will not accept the offer until they have agreed to our conditions.
Do you remember hearing about the passive voice in English? This is a grammatical
construction that emphasizes a result, not the thing or person that created the result.
To create the present perfect tense with the passive voice, just use this pattern…
Here is an example:
We either don’t know or we don’t care. We are simply emphasizing that the dog has
been found. If we would like to emphasize the person who did the action, we can say
something like, “Ana has found the lost dog.”
Here are some more sentences that have the present perfect tense used in the passive
voice.
The present perfect can also be used in many types of dependent clauses. Remember,
a dependent clause is simply a group of words that does not express a complete
thought.
Clause: Which have been considered the most valuable gemstone for centuries
Complete sentence: Diamonds, which have been considered the most valuable
gemstone centuries, are actually not that rare.
Many students get confused by the present perfect and the past simple. For example,
take a look at the following sentences… what’s the difference?
“Did you see my sunglasses?” is referring to a specific time or occasion in the past.
“Have you seen my sunglasses?” is asking if you have seen them recently, in general,
not during any specific moment.
Unfortunately, the sentences above don’t give much context. So, check out these
dialogues to fully understand…
Me: Hey! I saw a really cute pair of sunglasses when we were at Macy’s! They were the
white ones with the black stripes. Did you see them?
My sister: I did! They were right next to the jewelry counter. I would never wear
something like that, but they were cute!
Me: I can’t find my sunglasses. I think I left them in your car, but I’m not sure. Have you
seen them?
My sister: No, sorry! I can look in my car if you want, but I haven’t seen them
anywhere.
Of course, there’s more you can learn about the present perfect, but this guide has
covered the absolute, essential information. I hope you learned something new! Now,
it’s time to practice!
Talk soon,
Just take a picture with it, post it on Instagram, tag my account (@theenglishcoach),
and use hashtag #englishfulltime. You can tell us what your learned -OR- you can
practice using the present perfect by telling us about your life experiences & what you
haven’t done yet but hope to do one day. Consider this your homework. :D
Here’s mine :)
For more help with your English, check out my 12-week program
Connect & Communicate and my video collection in E nglish 24/7