Present Perfect

Fernanda Sousa
Carvalho
 Discuss

- Do you like music?

- What is your favorite kind of
music?
- Where do you usually listen
to music?
 What can you see in the photo?

What do you
know about it?
Lollapalooza is a music festival that takes place
annually in different countries around the world.
Simple Present - fact, routine

This year, the Brazilian edition took place in São

Paulo.
Simple Past - completed action

Can you identify the verbs in these two sentences?

What is the verb tense in each sentence?

 Now, consider this sentence:

Since 2012, Lollapalooza Brazil has taken

place annually in São Paulo.

What is the verb here?

Is it about the past or the present?

Is it an action completed in the past or an

action that started in the past and still
happens in the present?
 Since 2012, Lollapalooza has taken place in Brazil.

Starting point in the past Present Perfect

2012 Now!
The first time Lollapalooza takes
Lollapalooza took place in Brazil
place in Brazil. every year.

2023
The last edition took
place in March, 2023.
 Present Perfect:
● Used to talk about an action that started
in the past and continues up to the
present.
● The starting point can be mentioned with
the word “since”.
I have listened to Billie Eilish songs since I
was a teenager.
SINCE + SUBJECT + VERB IN PAST SIMPLE
I have listened to Billie Eilish’s songs since
her first album.
SINCE + (PRONOUN) + NOUN
 STRUCTURE

Short
Affirmative Negative Question
answer

… have not
Have … been
I/ You/ We/ … have been (haven’t) Yes, … have.
to a festival?
They to a festival. been to a No, … haven’t.
festival.

… has not
… has been to Has … been to Yes, … has.
He/ She/ It festival.
(hasn’t) been
festival? No, … hasn’t.
to festival.
 Other examples:

I have lived in BH since 2015.

She has attended concerts since

she turned 18.
We have had Lollapalooza festivals
in Brazil since 2012.
 Another possibility:

We have had Lollapalooza festivals in Brazil since

2012.

=
We have had Lollapalooza festivals in Brazil for 11
years.

What’s different here?

We use for to talk about duration of time and since to talk about
the starting point in the past.
Let’s practice!

Since or for?

for 7 years
for 2 months
since January
for 2 minutes

since I was born

since my birthday party

 Complete the sentences to make them true for you:

1. I have lived here …

2. I have studied English …
3. My classmates and I have studied together…
4. My favorite singer has been famous …
5. We haven’t had a Rock in Rio festival in Brazil …
6. I haven’t been to a music concert …

In pairs, compare your sentences.

Now, consider this question and the answer:

Have you ever been to a Lollapalooza festival?

- No. I have never been to Lollapalooza.
What is the question about?
- past experience.
What experience is in the answer?
- no experience.
Which word shows that?
- never
 When we want to know a person’s experience in
the past, we use this structure:
have/ has + subject + ever + past participle of the main verb

Have you ever been to a music festival?

For affirmative answers:

Yes, I have already been to a music festival.

Subject + have +(already) + past participle of the main verb

For negative answers:
No past
No, I have never been to a music festival. experience
Subject + have +never + past participle of the main verb

or:
No experience
No, I have not been to a music festival yet. until now, but
maybe
Subject + have not + past participle of the main verb + … yet
someday I’ll do
that.

What is the difference between these two answers?

Now observe the sentences again to complete the rules:
Have you ever been to a music festival?

- Yes, I have already been to a music festival.

- No, I have never been to a music festival.
- No, I have not been to a music festival yet.

RULES:

We use ever in questions about past experiences.

We use already if we had this experience at some point in our lives.

We use never if we didn’t have this experience at any point in our

lives and yet if this experience didn’t happen in the past, but can still
happen in the future.
Let’s practice!
 SOURCES

● GLOBAL Lollapalooza. Available at> https://global.lollapalooza.com/. Access on

March 30, 2023.
● MURPHY, Raymon. “Present Perfect”. English Grammar in Use: a self-study
reference and practice book for intermediate students of English. 3. Ed. NewYork:
Cambridge U.P. 2005.
● SILVA, Layssa Gabriela Almeida e. "Present Perfect"; Brasil Escola. Available at:
https://brasilescola.uol.com.br/ingles/present-perfect.htm. Access on March 30,
2023.