Grammar Topic 6 - Present Perfect Tense

Grammar Topic - 6

Present Perfect Tense

Last Friday at the bus stop, I overheard two students speaking. The conversation went something like this:

Student A: My father already bought me the latest football game. He give me permission to play the game whenever I finish my homework.

Student B: You're so lucky! 

I'm glad the student was able to get his football game. But do you know what was wrong with the grammar in his sentences?

'My father already bought me' should be 'My father has already bought me'.
'He give me' should be 'He has given me'.


In both instances, the present perfect tense of the verb should be used. Have you made such mistakes in your sentences before? Brush up your English and don't make those mistakes again!

Read on to find out when we need to use the present perfect tense. 


Many questions in the PSLE English paper also focus on the correct use of tenses. One of these that often confuses students is the correct use of the present perfect tense.

The present perfect tense is made up of:

has/have + verb in the past participle form

Click HERE  for a list of verbs in the past participle form.

The present perfect tense is used to talk about events in the past without any specified time. That means adverbs like ‘yesterday’, ‘last night’, etc. are not stated.

·      The present perfect tense and ‘never’, ‘ever’, ‘already’, ‘yet’, ‘just’ and ‘still’.

Examples:

-  “Never have I watched such an exciting movie!” Joshua exclaimed. “Have you watched the movie yet, Peter?”

-  “I have watched the movie already, Joshua,” replied Peter. “I do agree with you. I don’t think I have ever watched such an exciting movie!”

-  Never have I seen such an adorable kitten.

-  Would they ever have built another theme park on the island?

-  The bus has already left. We must wait for the next one.

-  Have they eaten yet?

-  She has just completed the questionnaire.

-  I sent her a text message an hour ago but she still has not replied.

We can also use the present perfect tense for actions that happened in the past and have continued into the present and will continue in the future.

·      The present perfect tense and ‘for’ and ‘since

Examples:

-  Gordon has worked as a police officer for six years.

-  We have been in London since Wednesday.

We can use the present perfect tense for actions that happened in the past that still affect the present. We use the present perfect tense with the simple present tense or the present continuous tense.

Examples:

-  My father has painted the room. It looks beautiful!

-  The journalist has returned from the accident scene and is writing the article on the accident now.

-  Tom has boiled some water. He will make a pot of tea.

Let’s Practise

Select the correct answer.

1.     Never have I ______ such a beautiful dress.

(1)  see

(2)  saw

(3)  sees

(4)  seen

2.     It is early but already most of the students ______.

(1)  arrive

(2)  arrived

(3)  have arrived

(4)  will arrive

3.     Ben ______ calligraphy since he was eight years old.

(1)  likes

(2)  liked

(3)  will like

(4)  has liked

4.     Neither my brother nor I ______ any otters at the riverbank near our house.

(1)  see

(2)  seen

(3)  has seen

(4)  have seen

5.     Joan’s father ______ as a crane operator for the past decade but he will soon be starting work as a bus driver.

(1)  works

(2)  have worked

(3)  has worked

(4)  will work

6.     The weather ______ cold, so you must wear a jacket when you go out.

(1)  turns

(2)  turned

(3)  was turning

(4)  has turned

7.     The plants ______ well. Janice certainly has green fingers.

(1)  grow

(2)  have grown

(3)  growing

(4)  were growing

8.     Many people ______ already started queuing outside the store even though it will not be open for another hour.

(1)  had

(2)  have

(3)  was

(4)  were

Answers:

1.     4

2.     3

3.     4

4.     4

5.     3

6.     4

7.     2

8.     2