The perfect tenses are used for actions that are completed or “perfected” by the present, or by a particular point in the past or future.
The three perfect tenses are:
- the present perfect
- the past perfect
- the future perfect.
The present perfect tense
The present perfect tense is used for actions that finished in the past, but which affect the present.
How it is formed
Example: have/has + verb + ed (e.g. have/has walked)
|
Examples
- I have finished sweeping the kitchen floor so I can now wash the dishes.
- Luis has finished his assignment, but wants to check it one last time.
- The service has begun so please keep quiet.
- They have decided to have an early night so will not be going to the party.
- The easterly wind has brought the rain.
- Lisa has swum from Robben Island to Cape Town.
The past perfect tense
The past perfect tense is for actions that were completed in the past before something else happened.
How it is formed
Example: had + verb + ed (e.g. had walked)
|
Examples
- My match had finished before the rain started.
- The aeroplane had landed by the time we got to the airport.
- Marus and Maria have dated since high school.
- Lenny had eaten his supper by the time his mother arrived home from work.
- The two children had already finished primary school when their younger brother was born.
- The giraffe had eaten the acacia tree before the tourists arrived.
The future perfect
The future perfect tense is used for actions that are expected to take place before a particular time in the future.
How it is formed
Example: will have + verb + ed (e.g. will have walked)
|
Examples
- Maria will have finished the report before she leaves the office.
- We will have lived in Cape Town for 20 years by the end of August.
- My grandparents will have arrived at the station by the time I get there.
- By the time you read this letter, I will have left.
- I will have finished writing this blog post before I leave the office tonight.
- They will have spent all their savings by the time they get back from their around-the-world trip.
Refer to the verb timeline always when you are learning about verbs.
Thank you for reading this post. Want to practise your grammar in context and take your knowledge of English to the next level? Why not subscribe to my weekly grammar quiz and worksheets. Select the option to subscribe at the bottom of this page.
Thank you for reading this post.
Select the option to subscribe at the bottom of this page. |