The present perfect
is a grammatical combination of the present tense and perfect aspect that is used
to express a past event that has present consequences.[1] The term is used
particularly in the context of English grammar to refer to forms like "I have
finished".
The forms are present because they use the present tense of the auxiliary verb
have, and perfect because they use that auxiliary in combination with the past
participle of the main verb. (Other perfect constructions also exist, such as the
past perfect: "I had eaten.")
Analogous forms are found in some other languages, and they may also be described
as present perfect; they often have other names such as the German Perfekt, the
French ,the Italian passato prossimo. They may also have different ranges of usage:
in all three of the languages just mentioned, the forms in question serve as a
general past tense, at least for completed actions.
In English, completed actions in many contexts are referred to using the simple
past verb form rather than the present perfect.
or present perfect progressive) form, which combines present tense with both
perfect aspect and (progressive) I have been eating". The action is not necessarily
complete; and the same is
true of certain uses of the basic present perfect when the verb expresses a state
or a habitual action: "I have lived here for five years."
The present perfect is formed from the present tense of the verb have and the
past. Partecbl of a verb.
We use the present perfect:
• for something that started in the past and continues in the present:
They've been married for nearly fifty years.She has lived in Liverpool all her
life.
• when we are talking about our experience up to the present:
I've seen that film before.I've played the guitar ever since I was a teenager.He
has written three books and he is working on another one.
We often use the adverb ever to talk about experience up to the present:
My last birthday was the worst day I have ever had.
and we use never for the negative form
Have you ever met George?Yes, but I've never met his wife.
The past perfect
The past perfect, also called the pluperfect, is a verb tense used to talk about
actions that were completed before some point in the past.
We were shocked to discover that someone had graffitied “Tootles was here” on our
front door. We were relieved that Tootles had used washable paint.
The past perfect tense is for talking about something that happened before
something else. Imagine waking up one morning and stepping outside to grab the
newspaper. On your way back in, you notice a mysterious message scrawled across
your front door: Tootles was here. When you’re telling this story to your friends
later, how would you describe this moment? You might say something like:
I turned back to the house and saw that some someone named Tootles had defaced my
front door!
The past perfect is formed using had + past participle. Questions are indicated by
inverting the subject and had. Negatives are made with not.
• Statement: You had studied English before you moved to New York.
• Question: Had you studied English before you moved to New York?
• Negative: You had not studied English before you moved to New York.
The past perfect expresses the idea that something occurred before another action
in the past. It can also show that something happened before a specific time in the
past.
Examples:
• I had never seen such a beautiful beach before I went to Kauai.
• I did not have any money because I had lost my wallet.
• Tony knew Istanbul so well because he had visited the city several
times.
• Had Susan ever studied Thai before she moved to Thailand?
• She only understood the movie because she had read the book.
