Present perfect

Do you know how to use phrases like She's called every day this week, I've broken my leg and Have you ever been to Scotland? Test what you know with interactive exercises and read the explanation to help you.

Look at these examples to see how the present perfect is used.

He's been to ten different countries.
I haven't seen her today.
My phone's run out of battery. Can I use yours?
Have you ever dyed your hair a different colour?

Try this exercise to test your grammar.

Grammar test 1: Present perfect: Grammar test 1

Read the explanation to learn more.

Grammar explanation

We use the present perfect simple (have or has + past participle) to talk about past actions or states which are still connected to the present.

Unfinished time and states

We often use the present perfect to say what we've done in an unfinished time period, such as today, this week, this year, etc., and with expressions such as so far, until now, before, etc.

They've been on holiday twice this year.
We haven't had a lot of positive feedback so far.
I'm sure I've seen that film before.

We also use it to talk about life experiences, as our life is also an unfinished time period. We often use never in negative sentences and ever in questions.

I've worked for six different companies.
He's never won a gold medal.
Have you ever been to Australia?

We also use the present perfect to talk about unfinished states, especially with for, since and how long.

She's wanted to be a police officer since she was a child.
I haven't known him for very long.
How long have you had that phone?

Finished time and states

If we say when something happened, or we feel that that part of our life is finished, we use the past simple.

We visited Russia for the first time in 1992.
I went to three different primary schools.
Before she retired, she worked in several different countries.

We also use the past simple for finished states.

We knew all our neighbours when we were children.
I didn't like bananas for a really long time. Now I love them!

Past actions with a result in the present

We can use the present perfect to talk about a past action that has a result in the present.

He's broken his leg so he can't go on holiday.
There's been an accident on the main road, so let's take a different route.
They haven't called me, so I don't think they need me today.

Again, if we say when it happened, we use the past simple.

He broke his leg last week so he can't go on holiday.

However, we often use the present perfect with words like just, recently, already, yet and still.

We've recently started going to the gym.
She's already finished season one and now she's watching season two.
Have you checked your emails yet?

Do this exercise to test your grammar again.

Grammar test 2: Present perfect: Grammar test 2

Try another grammar lesson

Language level

B1 Intermediate

I am really confused between present perfect and past simple and present perfect continuous and past continuous. This confusion is mainly related to the actions which are stopped recently or immediately stopped. For example 1) Suppose someone entered in my room and asked me whats going on ? Which one is appropriate for it I have been working on my assignment, so I need some break now Or I was just working on my assignment , so need some break now I have heard in many conversations people are using past continuous tense. Whats the proper explanation for it with some examples? 2) As we have heard that present perfect is more prevalent in British English and past simple in American English. Does this also apply to present perfect continuous and past continuous tense or is it applicable only wouthout continuous tense. Eg They have just arrived for the party Vs They just arrived for the party Which one is correct and please explain it with proper explanation and examples. 3) what about this :- I have been just thinking about calling you Vs I was just thinking about calling you As both seems to be properly formed 4) I have been painting the wall , so i my clothes are dirty Vs I was just painting the wall, so my cloths are dirty Which one is correct? Thank you

Hello ravindersolanki1,

In many situations there are multiple possible forms and which one a speaker chooses depends on how they see the action rather than some objective aspect of the action. For example, let's say I moved to London twenty years ago. I could say either of these:

I live in London.
I'm living in London.

The difference is not found in the facts of the situation but rather how I see it. The simple form (live) suggests that I see London as my home; the continuous form (am living) suggests that I see it as a temporary situation rather than a permanent one and that I anticipate moving away from London at some point.

This is very common with aspects, including perfect forms. In your example, both have been working and was working are possible. The first suggests that the work continued up to the present and may continue on. The second suggests that my work has finished for the time being. The other examples are all similar.

It's true that in US English the past tense is used for very recent events, while in the UK the present perfect is more common, but the present perfect is used in both for actions with a present result, which is the use in your examples.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Hi The LearnEnglish Team

The hunter who shot the elephant had been taken to custody.

There is no relation between the simple past shot and past perfect had been taken. They occur in different time frames. The sentence could have been :

The hunter who shot the elephant had been taken to custody before he could flee.
Am I correct? Is this sentence correct?

Thank you in advance

Best Wishes

Andi

Hello Andi,

Your suggested sentence is correct other than needing 'into custody' rather than 'to custody' - well done. However, note that the past perfect in the original sentence is not used because of a connection with the action of shooting the elephant, as the shooting is earlier in time than the being taken into custody. Another later time point is needed which may be in another sentence or implied in the context. You have, in fact, recognised this in your sentence as you have introduced a later action (not fleeing) to provide this connection so the past perfect makes sense.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Could you please tell me how "I haven't been playing tennis for years" differs from "I haven't played tennis for years"?

Thank you.

Hello Sefika,

The difference between the present perfect continuous (have/has been + ing) and the present perfect simple (have/has + verb3) depends on the context in which it is used. Sometimes there is little difference, sometimes there is a clear difference in meaning and sometimes only the simple is possible. Your example describes a person's experience in their life and in this context the continuous form is highly unusual. Thus, I would say that the simple form ('haven't played') is the correct option:

Can you explain the rules again? I'm not sure I remember them. I haven't played tennis for years!

The continuous form could be used if the speaker wanted to refer to the experience of doing something regularly. For example:

You seem in a good mood these days.
Yes, I took up tennis a few weeks ago and now I'm playing regularly. You know, I haven't been playing tennis for years and it feels really good to get back into the habit again.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Dear teachers,

To talk about someone’s causes of blindness. Can I say she has gone blind because of an acid attack?

Hello Khangvo2812,

You could say this but usually 'go blind' describes a natural process - blindness caused by disease, natural deterioration or similar. When the blindness is the result of an attack I think these constructions are more likely:

She was blinded by an acid attack.
She lost her sight as the result of an acid attack.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Hello sir, I have a question about the differences about Past Simple and Present Perfect.

For example: She had been played piano since she was eight

She played piano since she was eight.

So when do we know that which one is present perfect if the first sentence didn't have " had been" and the second sentence is " played". We only have since. How can we know the which one is Past simple and which one is Present Perfect.

Sorry about my grammar. I just a starter at English so it was hard for me to say i good sentence.

-Please answer when you have time sir-

Hello Lily_daisy,

The past simple and present perfect have different forms, which are explained above, but in brief:

'she played' = past simple
'she has played' = present perfect
'she had played' = past perfect

'She has played the piano since she was eight' is correct. It means that she started the piano at eight and today still plays the piano. The playing began in the past and is still true now.

'She played the piano since she was eight' isn't generally correct. The past simple suggests that she no longer plays the piano, but 'since she was eight' suggests she still plays the piano now. So there is a contradiction.

Does that make sense?

There is a detailed explanation of how to use 'since' with different verb tenses on this Cambridge Dictionary page.

Best wishes,
Kirk
LearnEnglish team