Present perfect tense is one of the forms in present tense category. With the help of important facts, we will discuss about how verbs are used in present perfect tense.
Present perfect tense is a tense that is used to denote an activity or action that has just been completed very recently (in immediate past), to denote an action whose time is indefinite, unknown or still not over, to refer to an activity that began in the past and is still happening in the present.
We will now see in detail the usage of different verbs in present perfect tense along with various facts and examples.
Forms of verbs used in present perfect tense
Verbs in present perfect tense can be used to form various types of sentences which we will see here.
Verbs in present perfect tense can be used to frame affirmative sentences, negative sentences, interrogative sentences and negative interrogative sentence.
| Serial Number | Types of Sentences | Examples |
| 1 | Affirmative | Sudha has lived in this house for so many years. |
| 2 | Negative | Sudha has not lived in this house for so many years. |
| 3 | Interrogative | Has Sudha lived in this house for so many years? |
| 4 | Negative Interrogative | Has Sudha not lived in this house for so many years? |
How verbs are used in present perfect tense
Here, we shall explore how different verbs are used in present perfect tense.
In order to use a verb in present perfect tense, we need to place ‘has’ or ‘have’ first, followed by the past participle form of the main (base) verb in the sentence. If it is a negative sentence, then the word ‘not’ should be placed in between ‘have’ / ‘has’ and the past participle of the verb.
Example: Sabarish has eaten his breakfast.
In the above sentence, the verb ‘eat’ is used in present perfect tense by adding the word ‘has’ along with the past participle of ‘eat’ which is ‘eaten’.
Example: Sabarish has not eaten his breakfast.
As the above sentence is a negative one, the word ‘not’ is placed in between ‘has’ and the past participle ‘eaten’.
When verbs are used in present perfect tense
We will now be looking at what situations and places (when) verbs are used in present perfect tense.
The table below will give a detailed account on when verbs can be used in present tense.
| Serial Number | When Verbs Are Used In Present Perfect Tense | Examples |
| 1 | When an action or activity is just over or completed recently (in the immediate past). | The movie has just begun. |
| 2 | When the time of the action is not known or not definite. | Sneha has studied in Cambridge Univeristy, England. |
| 3 | When the time of the action or activity is still not over. | Preetam has worked really very hard this month. |
| 4 | When an action has begun in the past and still taking place in the present. | They have been our neighbors for ten years. |
Formula and structure of verbs used in present perfect tense
There exists particular format in which the present perfect tense is used in a sentence. Now let us see in detail the formula and structure of verbs used in present perfect tense.
The table below will help us understand the different formula and structure in which the verbs are used in present perfect tense in different type of sentences.
| Serial Number | Grammatical Number And Grammatical Person Of The Subject | Positive Sentences | Negative Sentences | Interrogative Sentences | Negative Interrogative Sentences |
| 1 | Singular and plural first person and second person | Subject + have + past participle of the verb + remaining part of the sentence | Subject + have + not + past participle of the verb + remaining part of the sentence. | Have + subject + past participle of the verb + remaining part of the sentence | Have + subject + not + past participle of the verb + remaining part of the sentence |
| 2 | Singular third person | Subject + has + past participle of the verb + remaining part of the sentence | Subject + has + not + past participle of the verb + remaining part of the sentence | Has + subject + past participle of the verb + remaining part of the sentence | Has + subject + not + past participle of the verb + remaining part of the sentence |
| 3 | Plural third person | Subject + have + past participle of the verb + remaining part of the sentence | Subject + have + not + past participle of the verb + remaining part of the sentence | Have + subject + past participle of the verb + remaining part of the sentence | Have + subject + not + past participle of the verb + remaining part of the sentence |
Examples of verbs used in present perfect tense
Given below are a few examples and explanations of verbs used in present perfect tense for your perusal.
| Serial Number | Examples | Explanations |
| 1 | Has Priyanka worked in this office for 15 years? | In this sentence, ‘has worked’ is the past perfect tense of the verb ‘work’ which is still happening now and it is used to frame a question. |
| 2 | Rohit has not finished his project. | ‘Has not finished’ is the present perfect tense of the verb ‘not finish’ and it is used to indicate an action whose time is unknown. The usage of ‘not’ makes this a negative sentence. |
| 3 | They have visited us many times this year. | ‘Have visited’ is the present perfect tense of the verb ‘visit’ and it is used here as the time ‘this year’ is not yet over. |
| 4 | The meeting has just commenced. | ‘Has just commenced’ is the present perfect tense of the verb ‘commence’ and it is utilized here as the action of commencement was over just then. |
| 5 | Have you not read the book ‘Fault In The Stars’? | ‘Have not read’ is the present perfect tense utilized in this sentence. The usage of ‘not’ makes this sentence a negative interrogative one. |
| 6 | Vikrant has played basketball since he was a child. | ‘Has played’ is the present perfect tense of the verb ‘play’ and it is used here to indicate an action that started since when he was a child (past) till now (present). |
| 7 | The children have not come to the class. | ‘Have not come’ is the present perfect tense of the verb ‘not came’ and is used as the time of action is unknown. The usage of ‘not’ makes it a negative. |
| 8 | Has Ruplai returned to the hostel? | ‘Has returned’ is the present perfect tense of the verb ‘return’ and is used here as the time of the action of returning is not mentioned. |
Conclusion
The above article thus gives us a detailed overview on the usage of various verbs in present perfect tense with related examples and explanations.
Hi… I am Sowndharya Jagadeeswaran, a university rank holder in M.A. English Literature. I have also done my master’s in Business Administration. Inquisitive as I am, my interest in action-oriented research helped me publish research papers in reputed journals. Now, as a career, I am an instructor where I teach young and adorable students the intricate technicalities of Public Speaking and Creative Writing. I also enjoy writing articles on topics I specialize and research in.
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