‹Present Perfect›: Formation and correct usage
How it works
The ‹present perfect› is used in English when something is important for the present, when experiences are mentioned without a specific point in time, or when a state or an action has continued up to now. It is formed with ‹have/has› + ‹past participle› (3. verb form), e.g. ‹I have eaten› or ‹She has visited›. Typical signal words are ‹already›, ‹just›, ‹yet›, ‹ever›, ‹never› as well as ‹since› and ‹for›. It differs from the ‹simple past› in that there a completed point in time in the past is mentioned or clearly intended, e.g. ‹She has lost her keys›, but ‹She lost her keys yesterday›.
The ‹present perfect› is formed with ‹have/has› + ‹past participle›. It is used when the exact time is unimportant, when an experience is mentioned without a time reference, or when something is still relevant up to now. Signal words such as ‹already›, ‹just›, ‹yet›, ‹ever›, ‹never›, ‹since› and ‹for› often indicate the ‹present perfect›.
An example
Which of the following sentences is correctly in the ‹present perfect›: ‹They finished their homework.› or ‹They have finished their homework.›?
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50 Exercises
To the learning unit →Own explanation and own practice exercises by AmyMath. Subject reference framework: English. The topic assignment may vary by federal state.