Friday, July 3, 2015

Present Perfect



present perfect


A. Study this example situation.

      Tony is looking for his key. He can't find it.
       He has lost his key.
       ' He has lost his key' means that he lost it a short time ago and he still hasn't got it.


       This is the present perfect (simple) tense;

        I/we/they/you      Have (=I've etc) }    lost      / haven't lost       / have you lost?
        He/she/it               Has (= He's etc)}    lost      /hasn't lost          / has he lost?

We form the present perfect with have/has +the past participle (V3). The ver often ends in -ed (opened, decided) but many important verbs are irregular (lost, written, done, etc).

B. When we use the present perfect there is a connection with the present.

      - I've lost my key (= I haven't got it now)
      - Jim has gone to Canada. (= He is in Canada or on his way there now)
      - Oh dear, I've forgotten her name. ( I can't remember it now)
      - Have you washed your hair? (= Is it clean now?)

C. We often use the present perfect to give new information or to announce recent happening.

      - I've lost my key. Can you help me look for it?
      - Do you know about Jim? He's gone to Canada.
      - Ow! I've burnt myself.

      You can use the present perfect with just.  (A short time ago)

       - 'Would you like something to eat?'  'No, thanks. I've just had lunch.
       - Hello, have you just arrived?

        You can use the present perfect with already to say that something has happened sooner than                     expected.

        - 'Don't forget to post the letter, will you?'          'I've already posted it'.
        - 'When is Jack going to start his new job?'         'He's already started'.

        We often use the present perfect with yet. Yet shows that the speaker is expecting something to happen. Use yet only in questions and negative sentences.
        - Has it stopped raining yet? (not did it stop?)
        - I haven't told them about the accident yet. ( not I didn't tell)
        - Have you finished reading yet? Not yet

D. Study the difference between gone to and been to.

         - Gemma is on holiday. She has gone to Italy. (She is there now or she is on her way there)
         -  Toby is back in England now. He has been to Italy. (He was there but now he has come back)

E. When we talk about a period of time that continuous up to the present, we use the present perfect.
      Study this conversation.

      Matt  : Have you travelled alot, Lucy?
      Lucy  : Yes, I've been to 10 different countries.
      Matt   : Really? Have you ever been to China?
      Lucy   : Yes, I've visited China twice.
      Matt    : What about India?
      Lucy   : No, I've never been to India.

Some more examples:
      - Have you read Hamlet?
      - Sam has lived in Belfat all his life.
      - Have you ever eaten caviar?
      - We have never had a car.

We often use the present perfect after a superlative.
      - What a boring film. It's the most boring film I've ever seen.

F. You have to use the present perfect with This is the first time..., it's the first time...

     - Tom has lost his passport again. It's the second time he has lost it.
     - Is this the first time you've been in hospital


G.  Use the present perfect to say that you have never done something or you haven't done anything during a period of time up to the present.

       - I have never smoked.
       - I haven't smoked for three years.
       - I haven't driven a car since  high school.
       - Jill hasn't written to me for nearly a month.

H. We often use the present perfect with this morning/ this evening/ today/ this week/ this term, etc.
       -  Ron hasn't studied very much this term. 
       -  I have posted three topics today.
       -  Have you had a holiday this semester?
     
    

          [Reference: Murphy, Raymond (1985) English Grammar in Use, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press.
Wishon, George, E & Burks, Julia, M (1980) Let's Write English, New York, American Book Company
Thomson, A.J & Martinet, A.V (1961) A Practical English Grammar, Oxford, Oxford University Press]                        
 

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