The present perfect te

nse
The present perfect c
ontinuous tense
Present perfect simple
vs. Present perfect c
ontinuous tense
Practice exercises.

Usage: The present perfect tense

puts emphasis on the result
Ex: She has written five letters.
expresses an action that is still going on.
Ex: School has not started yet.
expresses an action that stopped recently
Ex: She has cooked dinner.
expresses a finished action that has an influence on the
present
Ex: I have lost my key.
expresses an action that has taken place once, never or
several times before the moment of speaking
Ex: I have never been to Australia.

Form of present
perfect:
Positive

Negative

Question

I/you/we/th
ey

I have
spoken.

I have not
spoken.

Have I
spoken?

He/she/it

He has
spoken.

He has not
spoken.

Has he
spoken?

For irregular verbs, use the participle form (see

list of irregular verbs, 3rd column). For regular
verbs, just add ed.

THE ADVERBS ARE FREQUENTLY USED IN

THE PRESENT PERFECT:
For: When talking about the length of time (duration), we use the present perfect with
for + a period of time.
Ex: I have worked here for five years. She has lived here for twenty years. They have
been married for six months.
Since: When talking about a starting point, we use the present perfect with since + a
point in time.
Ex: I have lived here since 1998. They have been married since June. We have been
at this school since last year.
adverbs (ever, never, already, yet, still)
'Ever' and 'never' are always placed before the past participle.
Ex: Has she ever met someone famous?
I have never visited London. Ive never been so sick.
Already, yet and still: It can be placed before the main verb (past participle) or at
the end of the sentence.

USAGE: The present perfect continuous

tense

puts emphasis on the duration or course of an

action (not the result)
Example: She has been writing for two hours.
action that recently stopped or is still going on
Example: I have been living here since 2001.
finished action that influenced the present
Example: I have been working all afternoon.

Form of present perfect

continuous:
Positive
Negative
Question
I/we/you/the Ive been
y
speaking.

I havent been
speaking.

Have I been
speaking?

He/she/it

He hasnt been
speaking.

Has he been
speaking?

Hes been
speaking.

Signal Words of Present Perfect Progressive: all day, for 4 years,

since 1993, how long?, the whole week

Verbs with stative meanings are not used

in the progressive. The present perfect,
NOT the present perfect continuous, is
used with stative verbs to describe the
duration of a state that began in the past
and continue to the present.
Ex: I have known Alice since he was a child.
Incorrect: I have been knowing Alice since he
was a child.

Present perfect simple

Present perfect
continuous

Form

Have/has + V-ed/ V3

Have/has + been + V ing/V3

Usage

The present perfect simple

expresses an action that is still
going on or that stopped recently,
but has an influence on the
present. It puts emphasis on the
result.

The present perfect

progressive expresses an
action that recently stopped
or is still going on. It puts
emphasis on the duration or
course of the action.

Adverbs
frequently
used

For, since, already, ever, never, all day, for 4 years, since
yet, still, etc.
1993, how long?, the
whole week, etc.

Example

I have written five letters.

I have been playing football

since 3 oclock.

We can use both the present perfect simple and the present
perfect continuous to describe an activity that started in the
past and continues up to the present and possibly into the
future.
Ex: They have been studying English for three years.
Theyve studied English for three years.

We can use the present perfect simple and the present

perfect continuous with lately and recently.
Ex: Ive been working hard lately.
Ive done a lot of work lately.

EXERCISES

Present perfect
simple.
Present perfect
continuous.
Present perfect
simple and present
perfect continuous.

1.

Since classes began, I (have, not)_____ much free time. I (have)____ several
big tests to study for.

2.

The science of medicine (advance)______ a great deal in the 19 th century.

3.

We (have)_____ three major snowstorms so far this winter. I wonder how

many more we will have.

4.

I (write)______ them three times, but I havent received a reply.

5.

The telephone (ring)_________ four times in the last hours, and each time it
has been for my office mate.

6.

A: What are you going to order for dinner?

B: Well, I (have, never)________ vegeterian pizza, so I think Ill order that.

7.

Bill (be)_________ here since 22nd.

8.

So far this week, I (have)_________ two tests and a quiz.

9.

Alex is an artist. He (draw)______ many beautiful pictures in his lifetime.

10.

Fatima (see, never)_________ snow in her entire lifetime.

1.

He (work)___________ in this company since 1985.

2.

I (wait)_____ for you since two o'clock.

3.

Mary (live)_________ in Germany since 1992.

4.

Why is he so tired? He (play)_____ tennis for five hours.

5.

How long (learn / you)______ English?

6.

We (look for)_______ the motorway for more than an hour.

7.

I (live)____________ without electricity for two weeks.

8.

The film (run / not)_________ for ten minutes yet, but there's a
commercial break already.

9.

How long (work / she)_________ in the garden?

10.

She (not / be)_________ in the garden for more than an hour.

1.

I (play)_________ football for five years.

2.

My team (win / only)_________ two matches so far.

3.

The others (be / always)________ better.

4.

Are we not there yet? We (walk)________ for hours.

5.

But we (cover / only)__________ an area of five miles so far.

6.

I (finish/just)_______ my homework.

7.

I (work)________ on this essay since two o'clock.

8.

Jane (go out)______ with Bob for seven years.

9.

Martin (date)________ three girls this week.

10.

How long (wait / you)_________ for us?

1.

2.

3.

4.

Mr. Dahlgren, IKEA__________ in Russia for several years, and

you arrived at the start. How long_____ in Russia?
I______ since 1998. Thats when IKEA_________ operations in
Russia.
How many stores_______ ?
We______ five stores so far, and we_______ several large
shopping malls in the last few years.
Consumer demand________ steadily since we_____ the first
store.
We________ the percentage of our global supply that comes
from Russia for a number of years. We_____ several factories
throughout Russia near St Petersburg, Moscow, and Karelia.

1.

But bureaucratic problems________ fewer recently.

For example, the Government _____ the number of
licences that are needed for a company to set up.

2.

However, we_____ a number of things in the time

we______ here. We___ management training
programmes to help new Russian entrepreneurs.
We_____ to show how a modern company has to
work to survive in the international market.