Present Perfect
Spoken Description
Learn and use the Present Perfect tense: conjugate 'have/has' and past participles, distinguish between 'for'/'since' and 'yet'/'already', and practice with real-world scenarios to improve past-to-present connectivity.
Apprenez le Présent Parfait : conjuguez 'avoir/être' au présent, utilisez 'depuis/sans' et 'déjà'/'pas encore', et pratiquez avec des exemples concrets pour lier passé et présent.
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The present perfect connects past actions to the present and highlights experiences, changes, and results up to now. It uses have/has plus the past participle.
Usage
Use the present perfect for actions that happened at an unspecified time before now, for repeated experiences, and for changes or achievements relevant to the present.
Form
The present perfect is formed with have/has + past participle. Use has for third-person singular and have for all other subjects.
| Affirmative | Negative | Question | |
|---|---|---|---|
| I have eaten | I have not (haven't) eaten | Have I eaten? | |
| She has eaten | She has not (hasn't) eaten | Has she eaten? |
She(write) three emails this morning.
(conjugation) She _____ (write) three emails this morning.
Past Participles
Regular past participles end in -ed, while many common verbs are irregular and must be memorized.
| Base Form | Past Participle | Base Form | Past Participle | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| work | worked | go | gone | |
| play | played | see | seen | |
| live | lived | eat | eaten | |
| learn | learned | take | taken |
She has(ask) several questions today.
(English word) She has ____ (ask) several questions today.
Examples
Experiences
Use the present perfect to talk about life experiences without giving a specific time.
Change
Use it to describe changes and developments up to the present.
Achievements
Highlight accomplishments relevant to now with the present perfect.
Signal Words
Common signal words for the present perfect include already, yet, ever, never, just, so far, up to now, and recently.
Summary
The present perfect links past actions to the present, highlights experiences and changes, and uses have/has + past participle. It is not used for completed actions with a specific past time.
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