The present perfect links a past action or situation to the present. Use it when the time is not finished, not stated, or not important, and the result or experience matters now. It often answers “up to now” questions rather than “when exactly.”

Build the present perfect with have or has plus the past participle. Use have with I, you, we, they, and has with he, she, it. The past participle is usually regular in -ed, but many common verbs are irregular.

Subject	Form	Example
I	have + past participle	I have finished the report.
you	have + past participle	You have met my sister.
he	has + past participle	He has lost his keys.
she	has + past participle	She has moved to Berlin.
it	has + past participle	It has stopped raining.
we	have + past participle	We have decided to leave.
they	have + past participle	They have seen that movie.

Make the negative by adding not after have or has. In speech and informal writing, contractions are common. Keep the past participle the same; only the auxiliary changes.

Rule	Example
Put not after have or has	She has not called me.
Use contractions in informal style	We haven’t finished yet.
Do not add do or did	They haven’t seen it.

Form questions by inverting have or has with the subject. For short answers, repeat the auxiliary have or has. With question words, place the question word first, then have or has.

Rule	Example
Invert have or has and the subject	Have you eaten?
Use has with he, she, it	Has he arrived?
Wh- word first, then inversion	Where have they gone?
Short answers use have or has	Yes, I have. No, she hasn’t.

Use the present perfect to talk about experiences in your life or in a period up to now, without saying exactly when. The focus is on whether something has ever happened, not on the specific time. If you add a finished time expression, the present perfect is usually not used.

Rule	Example
Use for experience with no specific time	I have visited Japan.
Use ever and never for experience	Have you ever tried sushi?
Avoid finished-time adverbs here	I visited Japan in 2019.

Use the present perfect with time periods that include the present, such as today, this week, this year, and recently. The idea is that the period is still open, so the action is part of the current time frame. If the period is clearly finished, prefer the simple past.

Rule	Example
Use with time periods still in progress	I have had three meetings today.
Use with this week or this month	We have worked late this week.
If the period is finished, use past	We worked late last week.

Use the present perfect when a past action has a present result, often something visible or relevant now. The result is the point, not the timeline. This use is common with just, already, and yet.

Rule	Example
Use when the result matters now	She has broken her arm.
Use just for very recent result	They have just arrived.
Use already for earlier than expected	I have already sent it.
Use yet in questions and negatives	Have you finished yet? I haven’t finished yet.

Use since to mark the starting point of a situation, and for to mark the duration. Both typically pair with the present perfect when the situation began in the past and continues to now. Since is followed by a time point, while for is followed by a length of time.

Rule	Example
Use since with a starting point	I have lived here since 2020.
Use for with a duration	I have lived here for three years.
Use with actions that continue to now	She has worked at this company since March.

Choose the present perfect when the time is not specified or the connection to now is important. Choose the simple past when the time is finished, stated, or understood as a completed past period. Words like yesterday, last week, and in 2010 strongly point to the simple past.

Rule	Example
Present perfect for up to now, no finished time	I have seen that movie.
Past simple with finished time	I saw that movie yesterday.
Past simple when asking when	When did you see it?
Present perfect when asking if ever or up to now	Have you seen it?

Certain adverbs often signal the present perfect because they emphasize recency, repetition, or an unfinished period. Place them carefully: just, already, and still often go between have or has and the past participle, while yet usually comes at the end. Ever and never typically go before the past participle.

Rule	Example
Just goes after have or has	I have just eaten.
Already often goes after have or has	She has already left.
Ever and never go before the participle	Have you ever flown? I have never flown.
Yet usually goes at the end	They haven’t called yet.