B1-B2 grammar reference
Present Perfect
The present perfect looks back from the present. It reports a past event or situation without placing it in a finished past time, because the result, experience, or time period still matters now.
Form at a glance
Form: subject + have/has + past participle
When to use it
- A present result:
I have lost my keys, so I cannot get in.
- Life experience without a finished time:
Have you ever visited Portugal?
- An unfinished time period:
We have had three meetings today.
- A state continuing to now:
She has known him for ten years.
Sentence patterns
| Form | Pattern | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Affirmative | S + have/has + past participle | They have moved house. |
| Negative | S + have/has not + past participle | I have not finished yet. |
| Question | Have/Has + S + past participle? | Has the parcel arrived? |
| Duration | have/has + participle + since/for | We have lived here since 2022. |
Compare the meaning
Present perfect
No finished past time; connection to now: I have seen that film.
Past simple
Finished event at a stated or understood past time: I saw it last Friday.
Common mistakes
- Do not combine it with a finished-time marker: use
I met her yesterday
, notI have met her yesterday.
- Use the past participle, not the past form:
He has written
, notHe has wrote.
- Since names a starting point; for names a duration:
since Monday
,for three days
.
Nuance and natural usage
- British English commonly uses the present perfect with just, already, and yet; informal American English also permits the past simple in many of these contexts.
She has gone to Rome
means she is there or on her way;She has been to Rome
describes the experience of visiting and returning.