VOA日常语法2024--Simple Past and Present Perfect

Editors note: This is the third of a four-part series on verb tenses. Click here to see part one. See the others in Related¹ Stories.

In this week's episode² of Everyday Grammar, we're going to help you understand the difference between the simple past and the present perfect. English learners often confuse these two verb tenses.

Let's start with an example. Can you tell the difference between these two sentences?

Sentence one: I saw the movie.

Sentence two: I have seen the movie.

Sentence one uses the simple past tense. Sentence two uses the present perfect tense.

"I saw the movie" and "I have seen the movie" both refer to an action that was finished in the past. But there is one important difference: "I saw the movie" suggests that you saw the movie at a specific time in the past. "I have seen the movie" suggests that you saw the movie at an unknown time in the past.

Use the simple past to talk about a finished action that happened at a specific time. For example, "I went out with my friends last night." The adverb "last night" is not required, but it does help clarify³ that the event happened at a specific time.

That's the easy part. Now let's talk about the present perfect. You form the present perfect by using "have" or "has" followed by the past participle form of the verb.

For example, "I have graduated from college." The present perfect confuses English learners because it refers to a past action. It is also called "present perfect" because speakers use it to stress the importance of a past event in the present. The sentence "I have graduated from college," emphasizes⁴ the present effect of a past event -- graduation. The exact time of the graduation is not important.

There are four more common situations that require the present perfect.

First, it can express a repeated action. When an action happened more than one time in the past, use the present perfect. For example,"I have seen the movie three times."

Second, it is common to use the present perfect with the words "for" and "since." "For" and "since" are adverbs that tell about the duration⁵ of an activity. They answer the question "how long?" For example,"I have studied English for a long time."

Third, the negative adverb "never" requires the present perfect. You can say,"I have never been to France."

You would not say,

"I did never go to France."

Finally, when asking a question in the present perfect, use "ever," as in,"Have you ever won the lottery⁶?"

Here's a tip: pay close attention to adverbs. Adverbs give hints⁷, or clues, about which verb tense you should use.

A good way to practice the present perfect is to ask an English-speaking friend if he or she has ever done something.

"Have you ever flown in an airplane?"

or

"Have you ever seen the Grand Canyon⁸?"

I'm Ashley Thompson.

And I'm Jonathan Evans.

Adam Brock wrote and produced this story for VOA Learning⁹ English. Jill Robbins was the editor.

_________________________________________________Forming the present perfect

Have/has + past participle verb

Ex. I have proven her theory.

Ex. She has gotten promoted.

Common adverbs in the simple past: last night, last year, yesterday, today, ago, first, then, later, whenEx. Yesterday morning, I went to the store.

Ex. When I lived in Boston, I worked at a deli.

Common adverbs in the present perfect: before, after, already, yet, for, since, recently, still, timeEx. I have already eaten.

Ex. I have already visited Angola three times.

Tip 1: Be careful of irregular verbs in the present perfect. With irregular verbs, the simple past and the past participle form are usually different.

INCORRECT: I have already did it.

CORRECT: I have already done it.

Tip 2: Make sure to use "has" for the third person in the present perfect.

INCORRECT: She have not read the book yet.

CORRECT: She has not read the book yet.

Click here for a list of common irregular verbs.

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Words in This Story

simple past tense - n. the basic form of the past tense in English. It is used to describe events that finished at a specific time in the past.

present perfect tense - n. A grammatical¹⁰ combination¹¹ of the present tense and the perfect aspect, used to express a past event that has present consequences.

unspecified - adj. not specified¹² or particular

clarify - v. to make (something) clear or clearer: such as

duration -n. the length of time that something exists or lasts

victim - n. a person who has been attacked, injured, robbed, or killed by someone else

pale - adj. light in color

profound¹³ - adj. having or showing great knowledge or understanding

1 related   

adj.有关系的，有关联的，叙述的，讲述的

参考例句：

• I am not related to him in any way.我和他无任何关系。
• We spent days going through all related reference material.我们花了好多天功夫查阅所有有关的参考资料。

2 episode   

n.（作品的一段）情节，插曲，系列事件中之一

参考例句：

• The episode was a huge embarrassment for all concerned.这段小插曲令所有有关人员都感到非常尴尬。
• This episode remains sharply engraved on my mind.这段经历至今仍深深地铭刻在我的心中。

3 clarify   

v.澄清，阐明，使变得清晰；净化

参考例句：

• I am happy to clarify any points that are still unclear.我愿意说明任何仍然不清楚的地方。
• Can you clarify this long sentence?你能把这个长句子解释清楚吗？

4 emphasizes   

强调( emphasize的第三人称单数 )； 加强语气； 重读； 使突出

参考例句：

• Marx concentrates on the alienation of labour and emphasizes the invidious aspects. 马克思集中论述了劳动的异化，强调它令人厌恶的方面。
• What he emphasizes most is that we must walk the mass line. 他最强调的是我们必须走群众路线。

5 duration   

n.持久；期间；持续时间

参考例句：

• For the duration of the strike we will remain closed.罢工期间，我们将停业。
• He was prepared to do this for the duration of the campaign.他准备好在选举期间做这件事。

6 lottery   

n.抽彩；碰运气的事，难于算计的事

参考例句：

• He won no less than ￡5000 in the lottery.他居然中了5000英镑的奖券。
• They thought themselves lucky in the lottery of life.他们认为自己是变幻莫测的人生中的幸运者。

7 hints   

n.建议( hint的名词复数 )；细微的迹象；征兆

参考例句：

• This list of hints help the new students a lot. 这一系列的建议对新生帮助很大。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Don't give him any hints when he answers the question. 在他回答问题时，不要给他提示。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

8 canyon   

n.峡谷，溪谷

参考例句：

• The Grand Canyon in the USA is 1900 metres deep.美国的大峡谷1900米深。
• The canyon is famous for producing echoes.这个峡谷以回声而闻名。

9 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

10 grammatical   

adj.语法的，符合语法规则的

参考例句：

• His composition is excellent except for some grammatical mistakes.他的作文写得很好，只有几处语法错误。
• He can barely form a grammatical sentence.他几乎造不出合乎语法的句子。

11 combination   

n.组合，合并，联合；

参考例句：

• He carried on the business in combination with his friends.他与朋友们合伙做生意。
• The materials can be used singly or in combination.这些材料可以单独使用也可以混合用。

12 specified   

adj.特定的

参考例句：

• The architect specified oak for the wood trim. 那位建筑师指定用橡木做木饰条。
• It is generated by some specified means. 这是由某些未加说明的方法产生的。

13 profound   

adj.深奥的，造诣深的；深度的，极度的

参考例句：

• I give you my profound thanks for saving my life.我对您的救命之恩深表谢意。
• He has a profound knowledge of mathematics.他数学知识渊博。