Present Perfect (high intermediate/advanced)

We form present perfect with 

have in present tense + a past participle verb. 

(past participle --ends in ed for regular verbs, column to the right for irregular)

We use present perfect for:

1. unspecified time in the past  (When you specify the exact time the finished event occurred, use simple past)

• ----I have ridden on an elephant.
• ----They haven't studied their irregular verbs
• ----She has grown taller.
• ----Have you ever flown an airplane?
• ----Has he ever gone to Egypt?
• 
  
• With "just" for something recently finished
• ----I've just made dinner.

• ----She has just come home.

• things repeated in the past
• ----He has gone skiing four times
• ----How many times has she gone on a cruise?

• for events that occured within a range of time:  
• ----I have jogged six times in the past month
• ----She has gotten dizzy twice in the past year
• --- He has only gone to the gym once since he joined it.
• ----We haven't gone on a date in the past six months
• 
  
• with "already" for things completed before expected  (Usually positive statements)
• ----She has already completed that worksheet.
• ----We have already finished three chapters.
• 
  
• with "yet" in negative sentences and questions for things that were expected to be completed earlier.  Although they aren't complete, they will be.
• ----We haven't studied passive voice yet
• ----She hasn't heard the important news yet.
• 
  
• with "since" and "for" for things that started in the past and continued until now
• ----I have lived in Northern Virginia since 1990.
• ----She has swum competitively for eight years.
• ----He hasn't done laundry since he got married.

English Page explanation and exercises. (Note: These exercises are hard. I recommend reading the explanation, doing other practice, then doing these exercises.)

Still, already, just --How do I use these words? How do they change the meaning?

Some students find present perfect difficult because

• They don't remember when to use have vs. has  Practice "have" in simple present, 
• They don't know many Irregular Verbs
• It's illogical to use a tense called "present" for the past.  The "have" we use in present perfect is the present form of have, but we usually use present perfect to refer to a past time or to a time that started in the past.

Past or Present Perfect? Remember within the timeframe, use present perfect. At a certain time, use simple past.