Present perfect 1 (I have done)

A Study this example situation:

I’ve lost my key. Tom can’t find his key.

He’s lost his key. (= He has lost …)
he has lost his key =
he lost it and he doesn’t have it now
have lost / has lost is the present perfect simple:
finished
I/we/they/you have (= I’ve etc.)
lost
done
he/she/it has (= he’s etc.) been etc.

The present perfect simple is have/has + past participle. The past participle often ends in -ed
(finished/decided etc.), but many verbs are irregular (lost/done/written etc.).
For a list of irregular verbs, see Appendix 1.

B When we say ‘something has happened’, this is usually new information:

Ow! I’ve cut my finger.
The road is closed. There’s been an accident. (= There has been …)
Police have arrested two men in connection with the robbery.
When we use the present perfect, there is a connection with now. The action in the past has a result now:
Tom has lost his key. (= he doesn’t have it now)
He told me his name, but I’ve forgotten it. (= I can’t remember it now)
Sally is still here. She hasn’t gone out. (= she is here now)
I can’t find my bag. Have you seen it? (= do you know where it is now?)
Compare gone (to) and been (to):
James is on holiday. He has gone to Italy. (= he is there now or on his way there)
Amy is back home now. She has been to Italy. (= she has now come back)

C You can use the present perfect with just, already and yet.

Just = a short time ago:

‘Are you hungry?’ ‘No, I’ve just had lunch.’
Hello. Have you just arrived?
Already = sooner than expected:
‘Don’t forget to pay the bill.’ ‘I’ve already paid it.’
‘What time is Mark leaving?’ ‘He’s already left.’
Yet = until now. We use yet to show that we are expecting something to happen.
We use yet in questions and negative sentences:
Has it stopped raining yet?
I’ve written the email, but I haven’t sent it yet.

D You can also use the past simple (did, went, had etc.) in the examples on this page. So you can say:
Ben isn’t here. He’s gone out. or He went out.
‘Are you hungry?’ ‘No, I’ve just had lunch.’ or ‘No, I just had lunch.’
 for and since when … ? and how long … ?
A We use for and since to say how long something has been happening.

We use for + a period of time: We use since + the start of a period:

We’ve been waiting for two hours. We’ve been waiting since 8 o’clock.

for two hours since 8 o’clock

two hours ago now 8 o’clock now

for since
two hours a long time a week 8 o’clock April lunchtime
20 minutes six months ages Monday 2001 we arrived
five days 50 years years 12 May Christmas I got up
Sally has been working here for six Sally has been working here since
months. (not since six months) April. (= from April until now)
I haven’t seen Tom for three days. I haven’t seen Tom since Monday.

B We often leave out for (but not usually in negative sentences):

They’ve been married for ten years. or They’ve been married ten years.
They haven’t had a holiday for ten years. (you need for)
You can use in instead of for in negative sentences (I haven’t … etc.):
They haven’t had a holiday in ten years. (= for ten years)
We do not use for + all … (all day / all my life etc.):
I’ve lived here all my life. (not for all my life)

C Compare when … ? (+ past simple) and how long … ? (+ present perfect):

a: When did it start raining?

b: It started raining an hour ago / at 1 o’clock.
a: How long has it been raining?
b: It’s been raining for an hour / since 1 o’clock.

a: When did Joe and Kate first meet?

⎧ a long time ago.
b: They first met ⎨
⎩ when they were at school.
a: How long have they known each other?
⎧
b: They’ve known each other ⎨ for a long time.
⎩ since they were at school.

D We say: it’s (= it is) a long time

since something happened
or it’s been (= it has been) six months (etc.)

It’s two years since I last saw Joe. or It’s been two years since …
(= I haven’t seen Joe for two years)
It’s ages since we went to the cinema. or It’s been ages since …
(= We haven’t been to the cinema for ages)
How long is it since Mrs Hill died? or How long has it been since …
(= when did she die?)
 Present perfect and past 1 (I have done and I did)
A Study this example situation:

Tom is looking for his key. He can’t find it.

He has lost his key. (present perfect)
This means that he doesn’t have his key now.

Ten minutes later:

Now Tom has found his key. He has it now.

Has he lost his key? No, he has found it.
Did he lose his key? Yes, he did.
He lost his key (past simple)
but now he has found it. (present perfect)

The present perfect (something has happened) is a present tense. It tells us about the situation now.
‘Tom has lost his key’ = he doesn’t have his key now (see Unit 7).
The past simple (something happened) tells us only about the past. If somebody says ‘Tom lost his key’,
we don’t know whether he has the key now or not. We know only that he lost it at some time in the past.
Compare present perfect and past simple:
They’ve gone away. They’ll be back on Friday. (they are away now)
They went away, but I think they’re back at home now. (not They’ve gone away)
It has stopped raining now, so we don’t need the umbrella. (it isn’t raining now)
It stopped raining for a while, but now it’s raining again. (not It has stopped)

B You can use the present perfect for new or recent happenings:
I’ve repaired the washing machine. It’s working OK now.
‘Hannah has had a baby! It’s a boy.’ ‘That’s great news.’
Usually, you can also use the past simple:
I repaired the washing machine. It’s working OK now.
Use the past simple (not the present perfect) for things that are not recent or new:
Mozart was a composer. He wrote more than 600 pieces of music.
(not has been … has written)
My mother grew up in Italy. (not has grown)
Compare:
Somebody has invented a new type of washing machine.
Who invented the telephone? (not has invented)

C We use the present perfect to give new information (see Unit 7). But if we continue to talk about it,
we normally use the past simple:
a: Ow! I’ve burnt myself.
b: How did you do that? (not have you done)
a: I picked up a hot dish. (not have picked)
a: Look! Somebody has spilt something on the sofa.
b: Well, it wasn’t me. I didn’t do it. (not hasn’t been … haven’t done)
 Present perfect and past 2 (I have done and I did)
A We do not use the present perfect (I have done) when we talk about a finished time (for example,
yesterday / last year / ten minutes ago etc.). We use a past tense:
It was very cold yesterday. (not has been)
Paul and Lucy arrived ten minutes ago. (not have arrived)
Did you eat a lot of sweets when you were a child? (not have you eaten)
I got home late last night. I was very tired and went straight to bed.
Use the past to ask When … ? or What time … ? :
When did your friends arrive? (not have … arrived)
What time did you finish work?
Compare:

Present perfect Past simple

Tom has lost his key. He can’t get Tom lost his key yesterday.
into the house. He couldn’t get into the house.
Is Carla here or has she left? When did Carla leave?

B Compare:

Present perfect (have done) Past simple (did)

I’ve done a lot of work today. I did a lot of work yesterday.
We use the present perfect for a period of time We use the past simple for a finished time in
that continues until now. For example: the past. For example:
today / this week / since 2010. yesterday / last week / from 2010 to 2014.
unfinished finished
today yesterday
past now past now
It hasn’t rained this week. It didn’t rain last week.
Have you seen Anna this morning? Did you see Anna this morning?
(it is still morning now) (it is now afternoon or evening)
Have you seen Ben recently? Did you see Ben on Sunday?
(in the last few days or weeks)
I’ve been working here since 2010. I worked here from 2010 to 2014.
(I still work here now) (I don’t work here now)
I don’t know where Lisa is. I haven’t seen a: Was Lisa at the party on Sunday?
her. (= I haven’t seen her recently) b: I don’t think so. I didn’t see her.
We’ve been waiting for an hour. We waited (or were waiting) for an
(we are still waiting now) hour. (we are no longer waiting)
Jack lives in Los Angeles. He has lived Jack lived in New York for ten years.
there for seven years. Now he lives in Los Angeles.
I’ve never ridden a horse. (in my life) I never rode a bike when I was a child.
It’s the last day of your holiday. You say: After you come back from holiday you say:
It’s been a really good holiday. I’ve really It was a really good holiday. I really
enjoyed it. enjoyed it.
 still any more yet already
A We use still to say that a situation or action is continuing. It hasn’t changed or stopped:
It’s ten o’clock and Joe is still in bed.
When I went to bed, Chris was still working.
Do you still want to go away or have you changed your mind?
Still also means ‘in spite of this’. For example:
He has everything he needs, but he’s still unhappy.
Still usually goes in the middle of the sentence with the verb. See Unit 110.

B We use not … any more or not … any longer to say that a situation has changed.
Any more and any longer go at the end of a sentence:
Lucy doesn’t work here any more. She left last month. or
Lucy doesn’t work here any longer.
We used to be good friends, but we aren’t any more. or … we aren’t any longer.
You can write any more (2 words) or anymore (1 word).
You can also use no longer. No longer goes in the middle of the sentence:
Lucy no longer works here.
We do not normally use no more in this way:
We are no longer friends. (not we are no more friends)
Compare still and not … any more:
Sally still works here, but Lucy doesn’t work here any more.

C We use yet mainly in negative sentences (He isn’t here yet) and questions (Is he here yet?).
Yet (= until now) shows that the speaker expects something to happen.
Yet usually goes at the end of a sentence:
It’s 10 o’clock and Joe isn’t here yet.
Have you decided what to do yet?
‘Where are you going on holiday?’ ‘We don’t know yet.’
We often use yet with the present perfect (‘Have you decided … yet?’). See Unit 7C.
Compare yet and still:
Mike lost his job six months ago and is still unemployed.
Mike lost his job six months ago and hasn’t found another job yet.
Is it still raining?
Has it stopped raining yet?
Still is also possible in negative sentences (before the negative):
She said she would be here an hour ago and she still hasn’t come.
This is similar to ‘she hasn’t come yet’. But still … not shows a stronger feeling of surprise or
impatience. Compare:
I sent him an invitation last week. He hasn’t replied yet. (but I expect he will reply soon)
I sent him an invitation weeks ago and he still hasn’t replied. (he should have replied
before now)

D We use already to say that something happened sooner than expected.

‘What time is Sue leaving?’ ‘She has already left.’ (= sooner than you expected)
Shall I tell Joe what happened or does he already know?
I’ve just had lunch and I’m already hungry.
Already usually goes in the middle of a sentence (see Unit 110) or at the end:
She’s already left. or She’s left already.