Proper use of have/ has/ had

present
Plural noun: I, you, we, Have
they
Singular noun: he she it Has
Past
either singular or plural Had
noun/subjects

1. Present perfect tense

-actions or situations in the past that are still
continuing
e.g. 1. I have been working as a teacher for
seven years/ since 2010. (use for if you want to
mention the duration; use since when you want to
mention the start)
rule: only use had been if there were two
events or actions in the past: a continuing action and a
finished action at the end
e.g. He had been waiting for two hours when
the doctor finally arrived.

2. Passive voice
-recent action (focused on the “items”)
e.g. Your items have been delivered
Active voice
-recent actions focused on the “we”
e.g. We have delivered your items.
Rule: Use only had when there are two events
e.g. When the mouse stopped working, it had
been purchased just two days ag0.

3. The experience of visiting places

Common mistake: use of have been
Rule: Do not use have been when you want to
mention the time because have/has/had been when
talking about life experience. (E.g. He has never been
to Italy)
e.g. We have been to Hawaii last year. (this is
wrong)
Correct way: We went to Hawaii last year