In this lesson, we'll delve into the perfect tenses in English. The core concept of perfect tense refers to something that has been completed before a certain time. The perfect tense includes present perfect tense, past perfect tense and future perfect tense. In this lesson, we'll go through various examples and usage scenarios of perfect tenses. We are confident that by the end, you'll have a much clearer understanding of this grammatical concept.
Lesson Introduction
Μέρος 1
Present Perfect
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Key Points |
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The Present Perfect Formula: have/has + past
participle
The present perfect is mainly used in the following
situations: |
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Subject + have/has + past participle |
over/in/for/during + a past period of time
so far/up to the present time/up to now |
Kevin has worked as
chief of the advertising section of our company for ten years.
Consumer spending
has dropped
significantly during the past eight months.
The department store
has been here since
1980.
I have known Michael for 10 years.
I
haven't gone outside
very much in the past few years.
My glass prescription
hasn't changed much
since the last time I had my eyes checked. My vision
has only
gotten a little
worse.
He
has been unemployed
since last June.
Up to now, the work
has gone quite
smoothly.
TOEIC Example: While the price of gold ______ at $1, 100 per ounce over the past month, most financial experts predict that it is likely to increase due to a lack of investor's confidence in the stock market.
(A) is stabilizing
(B) will have stabilized
(C) has stabilized
(D) will be stabilizing
The correct answer is (C) has stabilized.
From “over the past month”, we know that this sentence should use
the present perfect tense. The present perfect tense is formed
with "has/have + past participle." In this case, "has stabilized"
fits the context perfectly, indicating that the price of gold
became stable in the past and remains so currently.
(A)
"is stabilizing" is incorrect because it suggests that the action
of stabilizing is happening right now or continuously, which
contradicts the past time context mentioned in the sentence ("over
the past month").
(B) "will have stabilized" is
incorrect as it refers to the future perfect tense, indicating an
action will be completed before another action or time in the
future. The sentence is discussing a past-to-present situation,
not a future one.
(D) "will be stabilizing" is
incorrect because it uses the future progressive tense, suggesting
an ongoing action that will take place in the future, which again
does not fit the context of the sentence.
TOEIC Example: House prices in Taiwan ______ over the past 10 years, making home-buying slightly more affordable for middle and upper-middle-class families.
(A) had dropped gradually
(B) have been gradually dropping
(C) dropped gradually
(D) drops gradually
The correct answer is (B) have been gradually dropping.
The use of "over the past 10 years" indicates a duration from the past until now which further confirms the use of the present perfect continuous tense. The present perfect tense is formed with "has/have + past participle." Hence, "have been gradually dropping" is the correct answer.
(A) "had dropped gradually" is incorrect as it uses the past
perfect tense which is used to show that an action was completed
at some point in the past before something else happened. This is
not fitting in the context of the sentence as it does not indicate
that the drop in house prices is a continuing action.
(C)
"dropped gradually" uses the simple past tense, which is used to
talk about a completed action in a time before now. In this
context, it suggests that the action of house prices dropping has
been completed, which doesn't fit the context.
(D)
"drops gradually" is in the simple present tense, which is used to
describe an action that is habitual or usually happens. It does
not fit in this context as the sentence talks about a specific
period "over the past 10 years", not a general habit or routine.
Both the past tense and the present perfect tense can describe events that happened in the past, but they differ in their usage and emphasis. The past tense is only used to state that "the action happened at a certain time in the past", while the present perfect tense emphasizes the relationship with the present, and does not care about the specific time when the action occurred, but only cares about "whether the action has been completed until now".
For example, suppose we want to describe a person's experience of learning English. The sentence using the past tense may be "he learned English in college". This sentence only describes what happened in the past, and it does not emphasize the relationship between the present and the past. A sentence using the present perfect might be "he has been studying English for a long time", which emphasizes that he has completed the action of learning English, and this action still has an impact on the present.
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Past tense
I saw a
great movie last week. |
Present perfect tense
I
have seen
that movie. |
Joe has sent emails
to all of our team members.
So far we
have finished
one-third of the work.
I've never met him
before.
I haven't gone to the
gym recently.
✦ Talking about actions that have been repeated many times in the past
A: Have you ever
been to Korea?
B: Yes, I
have visited Seoul
many times. / Yes, I
have been to Seoul
many times.
How many times have you gone skiing?
I think I have seen
that movie before.
I have visited California every summer since I was 20.
|
have gone to
A: I haven't seen Mike recently. Where is he? |
have been to
A: Hi! Mike. How was your trip? |
Past Perfect
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Key Points |
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The Past Perfect Formula: had + past participle The past perfect tense is used to indicate a completed action or condition that occurred before another event in the past. It is formed by using 'had' followed by the past participle of a verb. Past perfect tense often involves two past time points, so if you come across a sentence structure like the one below, it's considered "past perfect".
(1) Subject + had + past partciple + until/before/by the
time + subject + past verb |
Jane's roommate
had cooked dinner
before Jane got back from work.
The train
had left before we
arrived at the station.
Peter
had left by the time I
arrived.
I had commuted by bus
for years until I moved and started to commute by car.
When we arrived at the stadium, the game
had already begun.
▶️ Subject + past tense verb + because/since + subject + had + past partciple
The traffic was bad this morning because a car
had broken down on the
road.
We were not able to stay overnight at the hotel since we
had not reserved a
room in advance.
TOEIC Example: A few senior managers ______ about the financial problems for weeks before the news was made public.
(A) know
(B) have known
(C) had known
(D) knowing
The correct answer is (C) had known.
The sentence
uses the past perfect tense ("had known") to indicate that the
senior managers knew about the financial problems before another
event in the past (the news being made public). The past perfect
tense is used to show that an action happened before another
action in the past. In this case, their knowledge of the financial
problems occurred before the news was made public.
(A)
“know” is incorrect because it is in the present tense, which
doesn't fit with the past context of the sentence.
(B) “have known” is incorrect because it is in the present
perfect tense. This tense is used to indicate an action that
happened at an unspecified time before now. The sentence, however,
specifies a clear time frame (before the news was made public), so
the present perfect tense is not appropriate.
(D)
“knowing” is incorrect because it is a gerund and doesn't function
properly in this sentence. The sentence needs a verb to indicate
the managers' past knowledge of the financial problems, not a noun
(which is what a gerund is).
TOEIC Example: The presentation had been postponed until the keynote speaker ______.
(A) has arrived
(B) arrived
(C) arriving
(D) arrives
The correct answer is (B) arrived.
The past perfect
tense is used in the sentence "The presentation had been
postponed" to describe an action completed in the past before
another past action took place. In this case, the action of
postponing the presentation was completed before the keynote
speaker's arrival. Therefore, the second part of the sentence
should also be in the past tense to match with the past perfect
tense in the first part, thus making "arrived" (B) the correct
choice.
(A) "has arrived" is incorrect because it is in
the present perfect tense, which is used to describe actions that
happened at an unspecified time before now. However, in this
sentence, we are talking about a specific event in the past, not
an event before now.
(C) "arriving" is incorrect
because it is in the present participle form and does not agree
with the past perfect tense used in the first part of the
sentence.
(D) "arrives" is incorrect because it is in
the simple present tense. It is used to describe habits,
unchanging situations, general truths, and fixed arrangements,
none of which apply in this context.
When the main clause uses "past tense", the noun clause often uses "past tense", and "past perfect tense".
Alex told me that
he had seen the movie.
Many employees were delighted to find out that their co-worker
Darran
had been promoted to
manager.
John told me last month that he
would start looking for a job.
We were informed that the trainee's orientation
was conducted yesterday.
When the main clause uses "past tense", the subordinate noun clause can also use "present perfect tense" when it expresses an action or state that continues to the present.
Mr. Smith mentioned that the research development team has developed methods to improve production efficiency.
When the main clause uses "past tense", the subordinate noun clause expresses something that will happen in the future, and "future tense" can also be used.
My financial advisor told me that the stock prices will go up next year.
TOEIC Example: The buyers were notified that the shipment from Korea _____ due to a problem with customs.
(A) being delayed
(B) would be delayed
(C) had been delayed
(D) have delayed
The correct answer is (C) had been delayed.
The sentence uses the past perfect tense ("had been delayed") to
indicate that the delay of the shipment occurred before another
event in the past (the buyers being notified). The past perfect
tense is used to show that an action happened before another
action in the past.
(A) "being delayed" is incorrect
because it is a present participle and does not fit the past
context of the sentence. This option would be used if the delay is
happening in the present, which contradicts the context of the
sentence.
(B) "would be delayed" is incorrect because
it uses the future conditional tense, which shows that an event
will happen in the future under certain conditions. In this
sentence, however, the event (the shipment delay) has already
occurred in the past, so the future conditional tense is not
suitable.
(D) "have delayed" is incorrect because it is
in the present perfect tense. This tense is used to indicate an
action that happened at an unspecified time before now. In this
sentence, however, a specific event in the past is being referred
to (the shipment delay), so the present perfect tense is not
appropriate.
Μέρος 2
Future Perfect
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Key Points |
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The Future Perfect Formula: will have + past
participle The future perfect tense is used to describe an action that will have been completed by a certain point in the future. It's typically used with time expressions such as "by" or "by the time". The structure is "subject + will have + past participle". For example, "By next year, I will have graduated from college." This indicates that the action of graduating will be completed by a specific time in the future, which is next year in this case. |
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Subject + will have + past participle |
by + future time |
Dennis
will have relocated to
LA by the time the branch opens.
Will you
have finished eating
dinner by the time I arrive?
I
will have graduated from university when I am 23 years old.
The next time you see me, I
will have had a
haircut.
We are so late. The concert
will have started by
the time we get there.
I
will have finished the
laundry by this afternoon.
TOEIC Example: $10 million _____ on sustainable technology and the research into the impacts of climate change by next year.
(A) is spent
(B) will spend
(C) will have been spent
(D) will have spent
The correct answer is (C) will have been spent.
This
is an example of the future perfect tense, which is used to
indicate that an action will have been completed at some point in
the future. In this case, the action is the spending of $10
million on sustainable technology and research into the impacts of
climate change. The future perfect tense is used here because the
spending is expected to be completed by next year.
(A)
"is spent" is incorrect because it is in the present tense,
suggesting that the $10 million is currently being spent, which
contradicts the time indicator "by next year".
(B)
"will spend" is incorrect because it is in the future simple
tense, suggesting that the $10 million will start to be spent at
some point in the future, but without any indication of
completion.
(D) "will have spent" is incorrect because
it is in the future perfect tense, but the passive voice is needed
in this context. The money is not the agent doing the spending,
but being spent. Therefore, the passive form "will have been
spent" should be used.