Present Perfect Tense: Meaning, Form, Examples and Exercises

Learn the present perfect tense with simple rules, sentence structures, time expressions, examples, common mistakes and exercises with answers.

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Introduction to Present Perfect Tense

The present perfect tense connects the past with the present. We use it for past experiences, recent events with a result now, unfinished periods of time and situations that began in the past and continue today.

I have visited Edinburgh three times.
She has just finished her homework.
We have lived here since 2022.

The present perfect is sometimes called the present perfect simple. It is formed with have or has followed by the past participle of the main verb.

Unlike the past simple, the present perfect normally does not tell us exactly when a completed event happened. The important point is its connection to the present.

Compare:

I visited Edinburgh in 2023.
The past time is specific and finished.
I have visited Edinburgh three times.

This describes the speaker’s experience up to now. The exact dates are not important. Choosing between these two tenses can still be difficult. See our complete present perfect vs past simple comparison for timelines, contrasting examples and additional exercises.

What is the present perfect tense?

The present perfect describes something that happened before now but remains relevant to the present.

It can show:

  • a life experience
  • a recent action with a present result
  • an action during an unfinished time period
  • a situation that started in the past and continues now

Life experiences

Use the present perfect to describe experiences without saying exactly when they happened.

I have travelled abroad many times.
Have you ever tried Taiwanese beef noodles?
She has never seen snow.

The person’s life is treated as an unfinished period. There may be more opportunities to have the experience in the future.

Recent actions with present results

Use the present perfect when a recent past action has an important result now.

I have lost my phone.

The phone is still missing.

He has broken his glasses.

The glasses are still broken.

We have missed the train.

The train has left, so the situation affects us now.

Unfinished time periods

Use the present perfect when the period of time has not finished.

I have answered ten emails today.

Today is still continuing.

She has attended three meetings this week.

The week has not finished.

We have made several changes this year.

The current year is still continuing.

Continuing situations

Use the present perfect for situations that began in the past and continue now.

I have lived in Taiwan for seven years.
He has worked at the company since 2021.
We have known each other for a long time.

These situations started earlier and remain true at the time of speaking.

Present perfect sentence structure with have and has
Subject Auxiliary verb Past participle Example
I / You / We / They have finished We have finished.
He / She / It has finished She has finished.

In everyday English, contractions are common:

I have → I’ve
you have → you’ve
he has → he’s
she has → she’s
we have → we’ve
they have → they’ve

I’ve completed the form.
She’s started a new course.

Be careful with he’s, she’s and it’s. They can mean either has or is. The following word shows which meaning is correct:

She’s finished.

Here, she’s means she has because finished is a past participle.

She’s tired.

Here, she’s means she is because tired is an adjective.

Regular past participles

Regular verbs usually form the past participle by adding -ed.

work → worked
start → started
clean → cleaned
complete → completed

Irregular past participles

Irregular verbs do not follow one standard pattern and must be learnt individually.

Common irregular verbs and their past forms
Base form Past simple Past participle
1 go went gone
2 see saw seen
3 eat ate eaten
4 write wrote written
5 take took taken
6 do did done
7 speak spoke spoken
8 know knew known

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She has written three reports.
They have gone home.
I have never eaten oysters.

Past participles are sometimes different from past simple forms. Our guide to English verb forms and usage provides further practice with forms such as be, been, was, were, have and has.

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When to use the present perfect

Experiences up to the present

The present perfect often appears with ever and never.

Have you ever visited Scotland?
I have never flown in business class.

Do not include a finished past time in the same sentence.

Incorrect:

I have visited Scotland last summer.

Correct:

I visited Scotland last summer.

Alternatively, remove the finished time:

I have visited Scotland.

Actions repeated before now

Use the present perfect when an action has happened several times and may happen again.

I have watched that film four times.
She has called me twice today.
We have visited the restaurant several times.

New information

The present perfect is often used to introduce recent news.

The company has announced a new policy.
Scientists have discovered a new species.
Someone has stolen my bicycle.

After introducing the event, speakers often change to the past simple to give specific details:

Someone has stolen my bicycle. I left it outside the station at 8 a.m.

Changes over time

Use the present perfect to describe developments between the past and now.

My English has improved considerably.
The city has become much busier.
Online learning has grown rapidly.

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Since, for, already, yet and just

Since and for

Use since with the starting point of a continuing situation.

since Monday
since 2019
since I moved here

I have worked from home since 2020.

Use for with the length of time.

for two hours
for six months
for many years

I have worked from home for five years.

Already

Use already when something happened sooner than expected or before now.

It usually appears between have/has and the past participle.

I have already sent the email.
She has already booked the tickets.

Yet

Use yet mainly in questions and negative sentences. It normally appears at the end.

Have you finished yet?
He has not replied yet.

Just

Use just for something that happened very recently.

The lesson has just started.
We have just arrived.

In British English, the present perfect is particularly common with just, already and yet.

Present perfect questions and negatives

Questions

To form a question, place have or has before the subject.

Have/Has + subject + past participle?

Have you completed the application?
Has she spoken to the manager?
Have they arrived?

Short answers use the auxiliary verb:

Have you eaten?
Yes, I have.
No, I haven’t.

For information questions, place the question word before have or has.

Where have you been?
How long has she lived here?
How many books have you read this year?

Negative sentences

Place not after have or has.

subject + have/has + not + past participle

I have not seen him today.
She has not finished the report.

The contracted forms are haven’t and hasn’t.

We haven’t received the payment.
He hasn’t called me yet.

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Common mistakes

Using the past simple instead of the past participle

Incorrect:

She has went home.

Correct:

She has gone home.

The present perfect always requires the past participle.

Forgetting have or has

Incorrect:

I never visited Scotland.

This is possible when referring to a finished past period, but it does not describe general life experience up to now.

Correct for life experience:

I have never visited Scotland.

Using a finished past-time expression

Incorrect:

We have met in 2021.

Correct:

We met in 2021.

Expressions such as yesterday, last week, three days ago and in 2021 normally require the past simple.

Confusing since and for

Incorrect:

I have lived here since five years.

Correct:

I have lived here for five years.

Correct:

I have lived here since 2021.

Using been and gone incorrectly

She has gone to the supermarket.
She is still there or is travelling there.
She has been to the supermarket.
She visited it and has returned.

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Present perfect exercises

Complete each sentence using the present perfect form of the verb in brackets.

  1. I __________ never __________ sushi. (try)
  2. She __________ just __________ the office. (leave)
  3. We __________ here since 2020. (live)
  4. __________ you ever __________ a famous person? (meet)
  5. He __________ not __________ the document yet. (send)
  6. They __________ already __________ the problem. (solve)
  7. My pronunciation __________ considerably. (improve)
  8. How long __________ your sister __________ English? (study)
  9. Someone __________ my seat. (take)
  10. The children __________ that film three times. (watch)
  11. I __________ not __________ from Daniel recently. (hear)
  12. The weather __________ much colder this week. (become)

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Answers and explanations

  1. have never tried
    Use have + past participle. Never describes an experience that has not happened at any time up to now.
  2. has just left
    Use has with she. Just appears before the past participle.
  3. have lived
    The situation started in 2020 and continues now.
  4. Have, met
    Place have before the subject to form a question. The past participle of meet is met.
  5. has not sent
    Use the negative structure has not + past participle. Yet normally appears at the end.
  6. have already solved
    Already normally appears between the auxiliary verb and past participle.
  7. has improved
    The improvement developed over time and is visible now.
  8. has, studied
    Use how long to ask about the duration of a continuing situation.
  9. has taken
    The action has a present result: the seat is now occupied.
  10. have watched
    The action has happened repeatedly before now and could happen again.
  11. have not heard
    Recently refers to a period leading up to the present.
  12. has become
    The sentence describes a change during the unfinished period this week.

The present perfect tense becomes easier when you focus on its connection to now. Use have or has plus the past participle for experiences, recent results, unfinished periods, repeated actions and situations that began in the past and continue in the present.

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