hey what's up Stefanie the English coach here from EnglishFullTime.com
today we're gonna talk about the present perfect tense in English now I know this
tense is difficult for many of you because either it doesn't exist in your
native language or if it does exist it's used differently than it's used in
English so hopefully I can make this tense very very very easy for you
the way I see grammar is that grammar is logical in any language you just have to
understand the pattern or how the grammatical structure is formed and then
you have to learn when to use it situation scenarios etc so if you can
understand all of that something that's very vague and abstract suddenly becomes
very easy so if you really want to get deep into this tense and understand it
fully I highly recommend that you download the guide that I'm gonna link
in the description I created a complete guide for you guys
it's all about how to use this tense with tons of sentence examples I spent
well over eight hours making this guide for you so it is an excellent resource I
think you're really gonna like it so download it study it highlight it
take a picture put it on Instagram use #EnglishFullTime tag my
account and show me that you are practicing with this material and I will
keep making more also if this video gets to ten thousand likes at least then I
will know you really liked grammar videos and I will make another one just
let me know what grammar tense you want me to cover next this is the first
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let's continue with the lesson okay so how do we form the present perfect tense
we use the subject has have and the past participle form of a verb let me give
you some examples I have walked I have played I have wanted right now
you have to be careful with the past participle form of the verb though
because sometimes it's irregular I have sung I have broken I have flown with
irregular past participles you just have to memorize them there's really no rhyme
rule or reason to which is which and how to remember etc etc just focus on
memorizing the list so that you can use these words correctly now when we
combine subjects like I you he she wiII they etc with having has there
are several different ways we can do it check this out I have I have not I've I
haven't I've not okay so that's five different ways that we can make these
combinations and just a tip for you native English speakers love contracting
words so if we can use a contraction we do okay it makes you speak a lot faster
and it's just easier so if you can use a contraction you want to use it unless
you're writing a formal academic essay or if you're trying to emphasize
something you might want to say no I have wanted that for a long time
that's when maybe you wouldn't use a contraction for emphasis okay so now
let's talk about when to use the present perfect tense the most important thing
to remember is that the present perfect connects the past and the present so for
example something that started in the past and continues today like he's been
a manager for seven years this means he became a manager seven years ago and
he's still a manager today another example is I've been really sick
lately this could mean that I got sick and then I got better I got sick and
then I got better I got sick and then I got better okay but I've been really
sick lately I get started in the past and I'm still sick on and off again okay
we also use the present perfect when we don't care to emphasize when exactly
something happened so someone could say I've been to Spain twice now this means
they went in the past two times but it's also indicating that they could
potentially go again right something that happened in the past and could
continue in the future another example is I've had three exams
this week okay so I'm saying that it happened this week but I'm not telling
you exactly if my exams were on Monday because if not I would say I had three
exams on Monday I'm using the past simple but if I say I've had three exams
this week I'm just telling you that they happened sometime this week and I'm also
indicating that perhaps I will have more exams this week that they're not
that my exams are over I'm just emphasizing that it has happened again
if I say I had three exams this week I am clearly emphasizing that I completed
three exams and I have no more this week I had three exams this week versus I've
had all right we can also use the present perfect when we talk about
achievements like she's won three Oscars and noticed that I contracted that there
I didn't say she has won three Oscars I said she's won she's won she's won three
Oscars that is an achievement and the reason I'm using the present perfect
it's because she won them in the past but I'm indicating that she is still an
actress and she still has the potential to win more Oscars so it could continue
in the future on the other hand if I'm talking about maybe an actor who's no
longer alive I might say he won two Oscars I'm using the simple past because
he did it in the past and there's no chance he's going to be doing any of
that in the future okay cuz he's dead another way that we
use the present perfect is to talk about things that haven't happened yet but
that we expect to happen okay so for example let's say you had a job
interview and I say hey did you get the job and you say I don't know yet I
haven't heard back from the company you haven't heard back meaning they have not
called you yet but you are expecting to get a call back okay another example is I
haven't been to Brazil yet okay I am dying to go to Brazil I cannot wait a
lot of people ask me about this in the comments but I haven't been to Brazil
yet I haven't gone to Brazil yet so I have not because I expect to go I'm not
gonna say I didn't go to Brazil because that's awkward it's like when when
didn't you go do you didn't go when in a specific year in 2013, 14, when you had a
specific opportunity what are you talking about using the past simple
connects something that happened in the past to a very specific time or instance
or occasion okay so I could say oh I had the opportunity to go to Brazil in 2014
but I didn't go right so I had the opportunity at a specific time and I didn't
go that's not what I'm talking about I'm saying I haven't gone meaning I expect
to go I just haven't gone in the past but I
expect to go in the future so think about things that you expect to happen
that have not happened yet and you can write some examples in the comments
actually you can write examples for all of these in the comments just to
practice okay another example of something that has not yet happened
scientists have not yet discovered a cure for cancer okay so why do we say it
like this they have not discovered or have not yet discovered because we
expect them to eventually discover a cure for cancer right we also use the
present perfect to talk about change over time so let's say that I see a kid
and then I don't see him for two years and he gets really tall and then when I
finally see him again I say wow you've grown up a lot since the last time I saw
you or Wow you've gotten a lot taller since the
last time I saw you okay so that is indicating a change over time you've
gotten taller since the last time I saw you you've grown up a lot since the last
time I saw you now think about when you first started
learning English I bet your English has improved a lot since then right I bet
your English has improved a lot since then I'm talking about a change over
time okay another example of change over time she's lost a lot of weight since
she started the diet she has lost a lot of weight since she started the diet
again I contracted that the first time she's lost a lot of weight she's lost
okay change over time she has lost a lot of weight since she started the diet she
started the diet over there somewhere and then she's lost a lot of weight over
time until today and she continues to lose weight now if you're talking about
a diet that she did a long time ago and maybe she stopped the diet gained the
weight back or who knows what then you would say yeah she lost a lot of weight
on the diet she lost it in the past maybe it found her again I'm just
kidding okay now one of the most common ways to use the present perfect is to
talk about life experiences like have you ever been on a plane
have you ever seen the office have you ever met the
president now speaking of life experiences there is a really common and
well-known game that English speakers play you can look it up later it's
called never have I ever and there's different variations of this game but
basically it helps you learn interesting things about your friends and whoever
you play the game with so basically you say never have I ever okay and then you
say something you've never done so I'm going to go first and I'll tell you guys
some things that I've never done using this sentence construction and then you
can practice in the comments by telling me five things you've never done and
then as you guys read each other's comments you'll find things that people
say that they've never done and if you have done that you can comment and say
hey I have done that so someone can say never have I ever climbed Mount Everest
but by saying that maybe you'll meet someone who has climbed Mount Everest
okay so never have I ever driven a motorcycle never have I ever been to
Brazil never have I ever broken a bone never have I ever donated blood and
never have I ever been to Disney World so again we use the present perfect to
talk about life experiences and we even have this game never have I ever to talk
about our life experiences and to figure out what people have done and what
people haven't done so now it's your turn tell me five things in the comments
that you've never done using the construction never have I ever okay so
that was a little detour we still have more to this lesson there's lots to
learn here but the next thing I want to say is that sometimes a sentence in the
present perfect can accomplish multiple functions at the same time let's just
look at this sentence I've been a teacher for over years and I've
worked with hundreds of students around the world
#TrueStory okay so here we are showing something that started in the
past and continues today I've been a teacher for over 10 years right and I've
worked with hundreds of students around the world but this is also talking about
life experience and it's talking about achievements so remember that all the
things I list previously in the video like we can use
the present perfect to talk about achievements life experience etc etc
sometimes in one sentence we're doing multiple things okay so I hope you guys
are hanging in there with me things are about to get a little bit
more advanced alright let's compare the following
sentences and analyze what the difference is between these two
sentences they cannot grow their business until they get some investors
or they cannot grow their business until they've gotten some investors what's the
difference it's so subtle it's very subtle
basically the sentence that uses the present perfect tense is emphasizing
that one action must be completed before the other action can happen it is about
emphasis okay they're essentially saying the same thing but one is placing more
emphasis on the fact that something has to be completed before the other thing
can happen so they cannot grow their business until they get some investors
it's kind of matter of fact they cannot grow their business until they've gotten
some investors meaning it's absolutely impossible for them to grow their
business until they've gotten some investors again essentially they are
saying the same thing the difference is very subtle but sometimes this emphasis
is necessary if you're a freelancer for example a lot of freelancers take
payment after they've completed the work but then they run into experiences where
their client doesn't pay or they pay late so what I've done and the
freelancers that I work with they all say the same thing we do not begin our
work until we have received the payment okay or we will not begin until we have
received the first payment okay basically ensuring I need to receive
payment first and then I will begin the work or then I will turn in the work or
whatever the arrangement is okay so we can also use the present perfect with
the passive voice I know a lot of you guys hate the passive voice and you hate
the present perfect so this is probably the worst combination in the world but
again my goal is to make it easy for you I hope I'm
making it easy please let me know in the comments if this is making more sense
okay so how do we do this how do we form the present perfect in the passive voice
we use has or have plus been plus the past participle okay it's actually
pretty easy gold has been associated with wealth for centuries the lost dog
has been found once the car has been washed then it can be painted remember
in the passive construction we're not emphasizing the subject of the sentence
we're not emphasizing who does the action we are just emphasizing the
result okay like the lost dog has been found who found the dog we either don't
know or we don't care okay but the dog has been found yay next we're gonna talk
about how the present perfect can be used in sentence clauses now remember a
clause is simply a group of words where you need a group of words to express
something okay but it's not exactly a complete idea let me give you some
examples so this makes sense whenever I've made up my mind okay
whenever I've I have made up my mind so that is in the present perfect but when
you hear that by itself does it make sense no because it's a clause it is a
group of words but by itself it does not make sense whenever I've
made up my mind but now let me put this in a sentence for you so you see the big
picture and you see how this works I'll let you know my final decision
whenever I've made up my mind okay I don't know what I'm gonna decide right
now but I will let you know my final decision
whenever I've made up my mind okay next wait I've dropped this month that by
itself does not really make sense right but what if someone says oh my goodness
I cannot believe the weight I've dropped this month right we're talking a lot
about diets in this video aren't we oh well okay
I can't believe the weight I've dropped this month now we are going to do a
clause that is in past participle form okay which have been considered the most
valuable gemstone for centuries right that doesn't make sense
alone which have been considered the most valuable gemstone for centuries now
let me put it into a sentence diamonds which have been considered the most
valuable gemstone for centuries are actually not that rare diamonds which
have been considered the most valuable gemstone for centuries are actually not
that rare next although we've been friends for many years right that alone
by itself is incomplete you can just hear that it's incomplete now let me
finish it although we've been friends for many years we still disagree on many
things although we've been friends for many years we still disagree on many
things ok so now we are going to cover some common phrases that we use with the
present perfect tense okay now it's really great to have these phrases in
your repertoire okay to just have them in your mind and your memory at the
so you can just use them whenever you
need them the first one is where have you been
okay hey where have you been like let's say someone has been your I don't know
your dad your mom I don't do you live with your dad in your mom maybe your
wife your husband your your kid I don't know someone's been gone all day and
they come back and you're like hey where have you been like you you don't know so
you're asking okay where where you been where have you been next I haven't seen
her in years or I haven't seen him in years or I haven't seen them in years
okay I haven't something that hasn't happened for a long time and continues
to not happen that's a little bit awkward because it's a negative sentence
but it still makes sense logically if you think about it something that hasn't
happened and continues to not happen right okay maybe draw a diagram so that
can make sense or something if you're struggling with it we haven't talked in
ages we haven't talked in ages I haven't heard from him in a while
I haven't heard from him in a while I haven't gotten around to that yet
so for example Renzo has been asking me to make a rather important phone call
for a couple weeks I have been so busy I literally haven't gotten around to it
yet okay I haven't been able to do it or in my case I have not prioritized it
above the other things I've been doing just because I've been so busy next I've
had a rough day or some people might say I've had a tough day I tend to use rough
I don't know why it just feels better I've had a rough day okay tough just
seems anyways but people do use it okay I've had a great day I've had a rough
day I've had a great time another one is have we met before
if you're meeting somebody and you're not sure I think this is a pick-up line
that guys use also have we met before when they no they didn't actually meet
the person anyways I could be wrong but I feel like I've seen that in movies a
couple times so it probably happens if you're a guy maybe you can try that and
just you know let us know if it works in the comments next has anyone seen my and
then whatever you're looking for has anyone seen my keys has anyone seen my
wallet has anyone seen my baby I'm just kidding has anyone seen my phone okay so
that pretty much covers the ways the many ways that we use the present
perfect tense again if you really wanted to
into this and keep studying and get lots of examples then please download the
guide that I've linked in the description it's absolutely free and I'm
still as at the point of making this video I am still working on it it's
almost finished but it's already like 10 pages long okay I'm trying to make it as
concise as possible but the reality is there's so much information to share and
examples that I want to give you so that it all comes together and makes sense so
it's a bit long but I think you're really going to like it and I think it's
gonna help this whole tense make sense now before I end this video I just want
to share a couple mistakes that people make with the present perfect tense so
that you can avoid these mistakes the first mistake is basically not knowing
your past participles you have got to memorize the past participles because if
you don't you will use these incorrectly so to give you an example of this and to
throw Renzo under the bus a little bit when we were dating it had been like a
few months or something like that and when he realized how quickly the time
had gone by he said Wow time has really flowed up hasn't it and I was like
flowed up what is this guy talking about for those of you who don't know my
husband is not a native English speaker and when we met his English was not that
good okay so anyways he said time had really he said time had really
flowed up and when I finally realized what he was trying to say I was like oh
my gosh he was trying to say that time had flown by
so yeah memorize your past participles another mistake that I've seen is
students using contractions where they shouldn't use contractions let me give
you an example if someone asks you have you seen that movie you can say yeah or
yes or yes I have okay but don't say yes I've yes I've okay don't contract it
right there contractions don't go at the end of
sentences they go at the beginning or somewhere in the middle so don't end
your sentence with a contraction next if someone says have you gone to the bank
and your answer is yes you know that you went this morning don't say yes I have
gone to the bank this morning because this morning indicates a specific time
and remember with the present perfect we're not indicating a specific time you
could say yes I've gone to the bank but if you're going to indicate a specific
time you need to use the past simple and say yes I went to the bank this morning
okay the last thing I want to say is that in sentences we can often combine
multiple tenses in this video I tried to give you sentences that focused mainly
on the present perfect without combining any other tenses because I don't know
how well you know those tenses and I didn't want to confuse you but for
example the sentence have you ever wondered what life would be like if
cellphones had never been invented have you ever wondered that is in the present
perfect tense but everything that comes after that is in different tenses okay
so we can combine conditional tenses present perfect past perfect past simple
future etc but there's always going to be a rhyme and a reason to everything it
all depends on the specific idea you're trying to communicate so remember that
grammar is very precise it's used to communicate very specific ideas as you
saw earlier in this video a small difference can make a very subtle change
in a sentence but it's still a change nonetheless the constructions don't mean
exactly the same thing so a lot of this might not make sense in the beginning
but now that you're aware of it and as you see this tense more and more
and more you will start to internalize this grammar tense you'll start to
understand how to construct it naturally without having to think okay I have to
put the subject here in the past participle here and this you won't have
to think about any of that and you'll start to understand the tense the way
native speakers do where we just know how to use it but we might not even be
able to explain how we know or why it needs to be used that way we just say I
don't know that's the way that's right that's the way it's supposed to be used
okay so that is it thank you so much for watching this video again give it a
thumbs up if you liked it subscribe to this channel if you're are subscribe to
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lesson and want more just let me know in the comments which grammar lesson you
want next and don't forget to check out Lingoda alright you guys that is it and