CHAPTER 4.  THE PRESENT PERFECT AND THE PRESENT PERFECT
CONTINUOUS
1. Use of the present perfect
The English Present Perfect tense is used to express actions which have already been
completed, or perfected, at the time of speaking or writing. In the examples given below,
the verbs in the Present Perfect tense are underlined.
e.g. I have done the work.
She has answered half the questions.
In the first example, the use of the Present Perfect tense emphasizes the fact that, at the
time of speaking or writing, the work has already been completed. In the second example,
the use of the Present Perfect indicates that, at the time of speaking or writing, half the
questions have been answered.
2. Formation of the present perfect: Regular verbs
The Present Perfect tense of any English verb is formed from the Simple Present of the
auxiliary to have, followed by what is generally referred to as the past participle of the
verb.
Most English verbs form the past participle in a regular, predictable manner. These verbs
are commonly referred to as regular verbs.
The past participle of a regular English verb is formed by adding the ending ed to the
bare infinitive of the verb. For instance, the past participle of the verb to work is
worked.
Thus, the Present Perfect tense of the verb to work is conjugated as follows:
I have worked
you have worked
he has worked
she has worked
it has worked
we have worked
they have worked
The following contractions are often used in spoken English:
Without Contractions

  I have
  you have
  he has
  she has
  it has
  we have
  they have

With Contractions
  I've
  you've
  he's
  she's
  it's
  we've
  they've
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It should be noted that the contractions for he has, she has and it has are the same as the
contractions for he is, she is and it is.
3. Spelling rules for adding ed to form the past participle
Some regular verbs change their spelling when the ending ed is added to form the past
participle.
a. Verbs ending in a silent e
When a regular verb ends in a silent e, only the letter d must be added in order to
form the past participle. For example:
Infinitive
  to close
  to move

  to please
  to receive

Past Participle
  closed
  moved
  pleased
  received

b. Verbs ending in y
When a regular verb ends in y immediately preceded by a consonant, the y is changed to i
before the ending ed is added. For example:
Infinitive
  to study
  to rely
  to carry

Past Participle
  studied
  relied
  carried

However, when a regular verb ends in y immediately preceded by a vowel, the y is not
changed before the ending ed is added. For example:
Infinitive
  to play
  to convey
  to enjoy

Past Participle

  played
  conveyed
  enjoyed

c. Verbs ending in a single consonant preceded by a single vowel
The rules concerning the doubling of final consonants which apply when adding the
ending ing to form the present participle also apply when adding the ending ed to form
the past participle.
Thus, when a one-syllable verb ends in a single consonant other than w, x or y
immediately preceded by a single vowel, the final consonant must be doubled before the
ending ed is added to form the past participle. In the following examples,
the consonants which have been doubled are underlined. For example:
Infinitive
  to rub
  to trim
  to plan
  to stop

Past Participle
  rubbed
  trimmed
  planned
  stopped
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When a verb of more than one syllable ends in a single consonant other than w, x or y
immediately preceded by a single vowel, the final consonant is doubled before the ending
ed only when the last syllable of the verb is pronounced with the
heaviest stress. In the following examples, the syllables pronounced

with the heaviest stress are underlined. For example:
Infinitive
  to control
  to infer
  to occur
  to permit
 
  to fasten
  to order
  to focus
  to limit

Past Participle
  controlled
  inferred
  occurred
  permitted
 
  fastened
  ordered
  focused
  limited

In the first four examples, the last syllable of the verb is pronounced with the heaviest
stress, and the final consonant is doubled before ed is added. In the last four examples,
the first syllable of the verb is pronounced with the heaviest stress, and the final
consonant is not doubled before ed is added.
The final consonants w, x and y are never doubled when the ending ed is added. For
example:
Infinitive

  to follow
  to box
  to portray

Past Participle
  followed
  boxed
  portrayed

It should also be noted that final consonants immediately preceded by two vowels are not
doubled when the ending ed is added. For example:
Infinitive
  to greet
  to rain
  to soak
  to treat

Past Participle
  greeted
  rained
  soaked
  treated
4. Pronunciation of the ed ending

The ending ed is usually not pronounced as a separate syllable. For
instance, in each of the following examples, both the bare infinitive
and the past participle consist of one syllable. For example:
Bare Infinitive
  puff
  work

  miss
  watch

Past Participle
  puffed
  worked
  missed
  watched
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However, when the ending ed is added to verbs which end in d or t, the ed ending of the
past participle is pronounced as a separate syllable. The reason for this is that the sounds
of d and t are so similar to the sound of the ed ending, that the ending must be
pronounced as a separate syllable in order to be heard clearly.
In each of the following examples, the bare infinitive consists of one
syllable; whereas the past participle consists of two syllables. For
example:
Bare Infinitive
  add
  land
  hunt
  wait

Past Participle
  added
  landed
  hunted
  waited


Similarly, when d is added to verbs ending in a silent e preceded by d or t, the final ed of
the past participle is pronounced as a separate syllable. In each of the
following examples, the bare infinitive consists of one syllable; whereas
the past participle consists of two syllables. For example:
Bare Infinitive
  fade
  glide
  cite
  note
 

Past Participle
  faded
  glided
  cited
  noted
5. Formation of the present perfect: Irregular verbs

In addition to regular English verbs, there are many irregular English verbs, which do
not form the past participle with the ending ed. The English irregular verbs are related to
the strong verbs of the German language. The following are examples of
irregular English verbs. For example:
Bare Infinitive
  begin
  find
  go
  let
  take

Past Participle

  begun
  found
  gone
  let
  taken

The past participles of irregular English verbs are formed in an unpredictable manner,
and must be memorized. A table of common English irregular verbs is provided.
Except for the irregularity of the past participle, the formation of the Present Perfect tense
is the same for an irregular verb as for a regular verb. In both cases, the Simple Present of
the auxiliary to have is followed by the past participle of the verb.
For instance, the irregular verb to take has the past participle taken. Thus, the Present
Perfect of the irregular verb to take is conjugated as follows:
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 I have taken
 you have taken
 he has taken
 she has taken
 it has taken
 we have taken
 they have taken
6. Questions and negative statements
As is the case with other English tenses, questions and negative statements in the Present
Perfect are formed using the auxiliary. In the case of the Present Perfect, the auxiliary is
have or has.
a. Questions
In order to form a question, the auxiliary is placed before the subject of
the verb. For example:

Affirmative Statement
  I have worked.
  You have worked.
  He has worked.
  She has worked.
  It has worked.
  We have worked.
  They have worked.

Question
  Have I worked?
  Have you worked?
  Has he worked?
  Has she worked?
  Has it worked?
  Have we worked?
  Have they worked?

b. Negative statements
In order to form a negative statement, the word not is placed after the auxiliary.
For example:
Affirmative Statement
  I have worked.
  You have worked.
  He has worked.
  She has worked.
  It has worked.
  We have worked.
  They have worked.


Negative Statement
  I have not worked.
  You have not worked.
  He has not worked.
  She has not worked.
  It has not worked.
  We have not worked.
  They have not worked.

The following contractions are often used in spoken English:
Without Contractions
  have not
  has not

With Contractions
  haven't
  hasn't

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c. Negative questions
In order to form a negative question, the auxiliary is placed before the subject, and the
word not is placed after the subject. However, when contractions are used, the contracted
form of not follows immediately after the auxiliary. For example:
Without Contractions
  Have I not worked?
  Have you not worked?
  Has he not worked?
  Has she not worked?

  Has it not worked?
  Have we not worked?
  Have they not worked?

With Contractions
  Haven't I worked?
  Haven't you worked?
  Hasn't he worked?
  Hasn't she worked?
  Hasn't it worked?
  Haven't we worked?
  Haven't they worked?

d. Tag questions
Tag questions are also formed using the auxiliary. In the following
examples, the negative tag questions are underlined.
Affirmative Statement
  I have worked.
  You have worked.
  He has worked.
  She has worked.
  It has worked.
  We have worked.
  They have worked.
 

Affirmative Statement with Tag Question
  I have worked, haven't I?
  You have worked, haven't you?
  He has worked, hasn't he?

  She has worked, hasn't she?
  It has worked, hasn't it?
  We have worked, haven't we?
  They have worked, haven't they?
7. The present perfect continuous

a. Use
The Present Perfect Continuous tense is used to express continuous, ongoing actions
which have already been completed at the time of speaking or writing.
In the following example, the verb in the Present Perfect Continuous tense is underlined.
e.g. The bus has been waiting for one hour.
The use of the Present Perfect Continuous tense in this example indicates that, at the time
of speaking or writing, the bus has completed one hour of continuous waiting.
b. Formation
The Present Perfect Continuous tense of any English verb is formed from the Present
Perfect of to be, followed by the present participle of the verb. For instance, the Present
Perfect Continuous tense of the verb to work is conjugated as follows:
 I have been working
 you have been working
 he has been working
 she has been working
 it has been working
 we have been working
 they have been working

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Thus, it can be seen that the Present Perfect Continuous tense has two auxiliaries. The
first auxiliary is have or has, and the second auxiliary is been.

c. Questions and negative statements
When a verb has more than one auxiliary, it is the first auxiliary which must change its
form to agree with the subject of the verb. It is also the first auxiliary which is used to
form questions and negative statements.
Questions are formed by placing the first auxiliary before the subject of
the verb. For example:
Affirmative Statement
  I have been working.
  You have been working.
  He has been working.
  She has been working.
  It has been working.
  We have been working.
  They have been working.

Question
  Have I been working?
  Have you been working?
  Has he been working?
  Has she been working?
  Has it been working?
  Have we been working?
  Have they been working?

Negative statements are formed by placing the word not after the first auxiliary.
For example:
Affirmative Statement
  I have been working.
  You have been working.
  He has been working.

  She has been working.
  It has been working.
  We have been working.
  They have been working.

Negative Statement
  I have not been working.
  You have not been working.
  He has not been working.
  She has not been working.
  It has not been working.
  We have not been working.
  They have not been working.

Negative questions are formed by placing the first auxiliary before the subject, and the
word not after the subject. However, when contractions are used, the contracted form of
not follows immediately after the first auxiliary. For example:
Without Contractions
  Have I not been working?
  Have you not been working?
  Has he not been working?
  Has she not been working?
  Has it not been working?
  Have we not been working?
  Have they not been working?

With Contractions
  Haven't I been working?
  Haven't you been working?
  Hasn't he been working?

  Hasn't she been working?
  Hasn't it been working?
  Haven't we been working?
  Haven't they been working?

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Tag questions are formed using the first auxiliary. In the following
examples, the negative tag questions are underlined. For example:
Affirmative Statement
  I have been working.
  You have been working.
  He has been working.
  She has been working.
  It has been working.
  We have been working.
  They have been working.

Affirmative Statement with Tag Question
  I have been working, haven't I?
  You have been working, haven't you?
  He has been working, hasn't he?
  She has been working, hasn't she?
  It has been working, hasn't it?
  We have been working, haven't we?
  They have been working, haven't they?

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