Welcome to this class on the present perfect tense.

So, now, the present perfect

tense is the first of the advanced tenses. It's advanced, not only in terms of the
grammar but also in terms of the way that we think about time when we use this
tense. And, I'm going to explain to you all about that. Now, by using this tense,
you will definitely be able to speak and write at a much higher level in English,
whether it's for social situations or business or in an academic environment, the
present perfect tense will allow you to communicate in a much more advanced
way.
So, are you ready to level up? Let's get started. So, the present perfect tense
connects the present with the past, okay? It's not just about the present or the
past, it links and connects the present and the past.
How does it do that?
This tense shows us that an action in the past has a result in the present, or an
effect in the present. That means that something that happened before now has
an effect or a result on something now.
So, there's that connection between past and present in the present perfect
tense. Now, it is different, therefore, from some of the tenses that you've learned
before. For example, you have learned probably, if you've been going step by
step, you have learned the past simple, right? So, let's look now at an example to
show you how the past simple is different from this present perfect.
So, in the past simple, I could say, "I lost my book", right?
So, the verb here, the past tense verb is what? Lost.
I lost my book. Or, I could say to you in present perfect, "I have lost my book".
I have lost my book. Here, "have lost" is present perfect.
So, is there a difference between saying "I lost my book", and "I have lost my
book"? In English, there is.
Sometimes, people use it almost in the same way, but actually, it's different. So, if
I say to you, "I lost my book", maybe I lost my book on Monday, but then I found
it on Tuesday. So, if you say just "I lost my book", it doesn't mean that that is true
today, it means it was true in the past. But, if you tell me, "I've lost my book", I
have lost my book means what happened in the past is still true now, and my
book is still lost, okay? Because maybe here, you lost it on Monday, you found it
on Tuesday, and it's not true anymore.
But, when you say, "I have lost", it means you lost it at some time in the past, we
don't know when exactly and it doesn't matter, because what matters is the
result, and the result here in this example is that I don't have my book now.
Okay? See that difference? So, this tense allows you to take something from the
past, bring it into the present, and make it true now.
That's one of the most common ways in which we use the present perfect, and
we'll also be looking at some other ways while we go through this class. Alright?
So, how does it actually look when we use it? This is just a quick overview of that,
we'll go into detail. So, to construct a sentence in the present perfect, we take the
subject, we take the helping verb "have", the verb "to have", we have to use that,
and then we take a regular verb or an irregular verb and we have to use the third
form, or the past participle.
Don't worry about that right now, it's not hard, you can learn it, okay? I'll give you
an example, these are just example verbs, okay? I have worked. I have worked in
this company for five years.
You have worked.
We have worked.
They have worked.
Or, if we give an example with an irregular verb, like the verb "to do", we could
say,
he has done homework.
That means he did his homework and it's still done; it's still finished.
She has done her homework.
It has done the job.
Okay?
So, this is a quick overview of it.
We're going to now learn exactly when to use this tense.
We use the present perfect in different situations.
Let's look at what they are.
So, the first one, we can use it to talk about something that happened in the past
and it's
still true now, okay?
We looked at an example of this before.
For example, we could say, "I have seen that movie".
So, if somebody asks you, would you like to watch this movie, and you say no, it's
okay,
I have seen it.
So, you saw it and it's still true that you have seen it.
So, "have seen" is the present perfect part of that.
Or, "I have found my keys."
"Have found" means you've found them and it's still true and you don't need to
look for
your keys anymore, because now you have found them.
Alright?
Good.
Next, we can talk about the past for a finished action using the present perfect.
For example, you could say, "I have finished my homework", alright?
I have finished my homework means I don't need to work on it anymore, it's
done, it's
over, alright?
Or, you could say, "I have cooked dinner".
That means dinner is ready, I don't have to spend any more time cooking, I have
cooked it, it's finished, it's over, alright?
So, we can use it to talk about actions that finished in the past, and they're still
true.
Or, sometimes you will hear people using it to talk about something that
happened in the past, but it's not finished.
For example, and these are actually the most common examples of this, of this
situation.
Somebody could say, "I have worked here for five years."
What does that mean?
I started to work here five years ago, and I still work here, okay?
So, "I have worked", alright?
Or, "I have lived here since 2012."
"Have lived"; I started to live here in 2012, and I still live here, okay?
It's still true.
It's still relevant.
So, we can use present perfect for that, and it's not a finished action, because in
this
case, I still work here.
I still live here.
Okay?
Good.
Next, we can use it to talk about something that happened in the recent past,
means not
very long ago, just a short time ago.
Maybe a minute ago, or maybe a short time ago, and it has some kind of effect or
result now.
Let's look at an example.
Suppose somebody says, "Would you like to go for lunch?" and you say, "Oh,
that's too bad, I have just eaten lunch."
Okay?
"I have eaten", the word "just" kind of emphasizes that recent part a little bit.
I have eaten lunch, so what does that mean, what's the result?
Well, I don't need to go for lunch again, right, with you.
So, that's when you would say something like that.
Or, if someone says, "Wait, don't send that email!", but you say, "Oh no, I have
just
sent the email".
"Have sent", so maybe it just happened in the recent past again and it already
happened,
and it's still true that it happened, okay?
So, we can use it like that.
And we could also use it for things that happened in the past, but they happened
often, they
happened repeatedly or repetitively, okay?
They happened again and again, so you could say, for example, "I have shopped
here for many years".
"Have shopped", okay?
It didn't mean that you kept shopping for years, no, but at different times over
the
years, you shopped, you have shopped in that particular shop, store, or mall or
something else.
Okay?
So, you could also use it for these kind of repetitive or repeated actions.
So, these are some situations in which you can use the present perfect tense.
Another way to understand when to use the present perfect tense is to look at
some of the common words and expressions that we use with this tense.
Okay, so let's do that.
So, I've divided the board here between some words and expressions that
describe things or actions that already finished, and some that have not finished,
that are still continuing.
For example, the first one, "I have already read that book".
So, let's look at this here.
Have - I have read is the present perfect, and the word is "already".
Okay? So, when we say I have already done something it means I did in the past,
and it's still true, because if I already read that book, then I already know what is
in that book, right?
It's still true now.
That's that connection between past and present.
Another example of a finished action in the past that's still true now: Our team as
just won the game.
So, here we have "has just won", the word is "just".
So, sometimes we can refer to an action in the past that happened very recently
with the word "just".
Our team has just won, okay?
Maybe it just happened, alright?
But it's still true now, so it's part of present perfect.
Now, let's look at a few other kinds of examples.
She has worked here for three months.
So, "has worked" is the present perfect and the word which we can use often with
it is the word "for".
Okay?
She has worked here for three months.
Let's look at another example and then I'll show you the difference between for
and something else.
The next one says, "She has worked here since January", okay?
So here, again, "has worked" is the present perfect, and "since" is the word you
can use with the present perfect.
So, what's the difference between saying "She's worked here for three months",
or "since January"?
Do you remember?
So, "for" should always be used with a period of time, right?
How long.
And "since" is used with the point in time when something began.
Alright?
So, let's suppose that she started in January, now it's March, so we can say she's
worked here for three months, it's the end of March.
Okay?
So, since + the point when something started and for + the length of time or the
period of time that something lasted.
So, we can use those two words with present perfect.
Next, "The flight has not arrived yet."
So, this is a negative sentence, but it doesn't matter.
"Has not arrived" is the present perfect.
"Has arrived", "has not arrived", and the word we can use is "yet".
This is unfinished, because yet means till now, till this moment, from the past, till
this moment, it has not arrived.
So, we can say, "The flight has not arrived yet", okay?
You can use that for lots of things.
The pizza hasn't arrived yet.
John hasn't arrived it.
It means till now.
Next, "Have you ever been to Italy?", okay?
So now, we're talking about in all your life, till now and including now, have you
ever been, it means have you ever visited, Italy?
Okay?
So, the present perfect can include all of the past, all of your life until now.
So, it could be here: Have you been, and the word is "ever".
So, a lot of times, we can ask these kind of questions and when you're asking
these
kind of questions, you're using present perfect.
Have you ever done this?
Have you ever been there?
Have you ever seen that movie, and so on and so forth, okay?
Next, "He has never eaten sushi."
So, this is kind of the flip of "have you ever", the negative version, right?
He has eaten, and here we're making it negative, he has never eaten.
What does that mean?
In all of his life, in the past, till now and including now, he has not eaten sushi.
Okay?
And the last one, "How long have you known each other?", okay?
Have you known, right?
Present perfect, have known, and this is the phrase that you can use with it, how
long
have you known each other?
So, you could say what?
"We have known each other for many years.", or you could say, "We have known
each other" + a particular year.
Since 2015, okay?
So, these are some of the common words and expressions you can use with the
present perfect tense.
Now, let's look at when not to use the present perfect tense, okay?
So, you cannot use the present perfect tense with any kind of finished time
expression.
What does that mean?
What is a finished time expression?
For example, words like yesterday, last week, last month, last year, in the 1960s,
these
are all times that are finished and over, right?
We cannot use present perfect with any of those expressions, if you have a
sentence
or if you have a question, okay?
But you can use the present perfect with an unfinished time expression or with no
time
expression.
Okay?
Let me explain.
For example, what do I mean by an unfinished time?
An unfinished time would be like today.
Today is not over, right?
So, it's considered, in English, an unfinished time expression.
Or, this week, it's not over.
This month, it's not over.
This year, it's not over.
Or, in my life, it's not over, right?
So, if you're talking about something like that, an unfinished time, then yes, you
can use present perfect.
Or, you can just use present perfect and use no time expression, alright?
So, if your sentence or question doesn't have any time expression, that's fine.
Because this tense, we're focusing more on the result of the action, not when
something happened.
If you need to tell me or ask me when something happened, then you need to go
to another tense, which is the past simple tense.
Okay?
But with unfinished time or no time, you can use present perfect.
So, let's look at some examples so you understand exactly.
It's really very easy.
So, in the past simple, with the finished time expression, we would say something
like this: I spoke to him three times last week.
Okay?
Now, "last week", right?
It's over, it's finished, it's a finished time expression, so here I had to use "I
spoke",
and "I spoke" is the past simple.
It's not the present perfect, right?
So, if I have to say, "last week", then I have to go back to just using past simple.
But here, I could say, "I have spoken to him three times this week."
Now, "this week" we said is what?
It's an unfinished time.
And "I've spoken", I have spoken, is present perfect, it's perfectly fine to use it
because it's an unfinished time this week, alright?
See the difference?
As soon as you use the finished time, then use past simple.
If you're using the unfinished time or no time, use present perfect.
Let's check another example.
Here, somebody asks, "When did you meet John?"
So, this word "when", right?
Very critical word in this tense, because as soon as you see that word, you can't
use
present perfect, because if somebody says, "When did you meet John?", you're
going to talk about a time in the past, even if that time was one minute ago or ten
years ago.
So, if you use the word "when" in your question, then again, use past simple.
Do not use present perfect.
But, what question words can we use with present perfect?
We could say, for example, "How long have you know John?", right?
"How long" is okay, because how long is talking about a time that started in the
past and it's still true now, it still counts, includes now.
So, that's fine.
That's like an unfinished time.
So, that would be okay.
Here, we can use present perfect, alright?
Let's take another example, "When did you visit Spain?"
Again, that word, right?
"When", and that would have to be past simple immediately, because let's say I
visited Spain last year, or in 2015, whatever, but it's going to be - I'm going to tell
you an answer which is finished, it's over, right?
But you could say, "Have you ever visited Spain?"
That's okay.
Why?
Because "Have you ever" is an unfinished time.
It means - what does "have you ever" mean?
It means at anytime in your life, till now and including now, have you ever visited
Spain?
So, that question would be okay.
So you see, it's really important to know when to use the present perfect but also
when not to use it with finished time expressions.