PRESENT PERFECT

How do we make the Present Perfect Tense?

The structure of the present perfect tense is:

subject	+	auxiliary verb	+	main verb
		have		past participle

Here are some examples of the present perfect tense:

	subject	auxiliary verb		main verb
+	I	have		seen	ET.
+	You	have		eaten	mine.
-	She	has	not	been	to Rome.
-	We	have	not	played	football.
?	Have	you		finished?
?	Have	they		done	it?

Contractions with the present perfect tense

When we use the present perfect tense in speaking, we usually contract the subject and auxiliary verb. We also sometimes do this when we write. 

I have	I've
You have	You've
He has She has It has John has The car has	He's She's It's John's The car's
We have	We've
They have	They've

Here are some examples:

• I've finished my work.
• John's seen ET.
• They've gone home.

We often use for and since with the present perfect tense.

• We use for to talk about a period of time - 5 minutes, 2 weeks, 6 years.
• We use since to talk about a point in past time - 9 o'clock, 1st January, Monday.

for	since
a period of time	a point in past time
	x------------
20 minutes	6.15pm
three days	Monday
6 months	January
4 years	1994
2 centuries	1800
a long time	I left school
ever	the beginning of time
etc	etc

Here are some examples:

• I have been here for 20 minutes.
• I have been here since 9 o'clock.
• John hasn't called for 6 months.
• John hasn't called since February.
• He has worked in New York for a long time.
• He has worked in New York since he left school.

exercises

http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/present-perfect-exercise-1.html

http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/present-perfect-exercise-4.html

http://www.better-english.com/grammar/presentperfect1.htm

http://www.isabelperez.com/happy/tenses/exercises/present_perfect_1.htm

http://www.eclecticenglish.com/grammar/PresentPerfect1D.html

Present Continuous

FORM

[am/is/are + present participle]

Examples:

• You are watching TV.
• Are you watching TV?
• You are not watching TV.

USE 1 Now

Examples:

• You are learning English now.
• You are not swimming now.
• Are you sleeping?
• I am sitting.
• I am not standing.
• Is he sitting or standing?
• They are reading their books.
• They are not watching television.
• What are you doing?
• Why aren't you doing your homework?

USE 2 Longer Actions in Progress Now

In English, "now" can mean: this second, today, this month, this year, this century, and so on. Sometimes, we use the Present Continuous to say that we are in the process of doing a longer action which is in progress; however, we might not be doing it at this exact second.

Examples: (All of these sentences can be said while eating dinner in a restaurant.)

• I am studying to become a doctor.
• I am not studying to become a dentist.
• I am reading the book Tom Sawyer.
• I am not reading any books right now.
• Are you working on any special projects at work?
• Aren't you teaching at the university now?

USE 3 Near Future

Sometimes, speakers use the Present Continuous to indicate that something will or will not happen in the near future.

Examples:

• I am meeting some friends after work.
• I am not going to the party tonight.
• Is he visiting his parents next weekend?
• Isn't he coming with us tonight?

USE 4 Repetition and Irritation with "Always"

The Present Continuous with words such as "always" or "constantly" expresses the idea that something irritating or shocking often happens. Notice that the meaning is like Simple Present, but with negative emotion. Remember to put the words "always" or "constantly" between "be" and "verb+ing."

Examples:

• She is always coming to class late.
• He is constantly talking. I wish he would shut up.
• I don't like them because they are always complaining.

Exercises to practice present continuous

http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/present-continuous-exercise-6.html


http://www.juntadeandalucia.es/averroes/torredelprado/ingles/presentcont1.htm


http://www.englishexercises.org/makeagame/viewgame.asp?id=983

PAST

FORM

[VERB+ed] or irregular verbs

Examples:

• You called Debbie.
• Did you call Debbie?
• You did not call Debbie.

USE 1 Completed Action in the Past

Use the Simple Past to express the idea that an action started and finished at a specific time in the past. Sometimes, the speaker may not actually mention the specific time, but they do have one specific time in mind.

Examples:

• I saw a movie yesterday.
• I didn't see a play yesterday.
• Last year, I traveled to Japan.
• Last year, I didn't travel to Korea.
• Did you have dinner last night?
• She washed her car.
• He didn't wash his car.

USE 2 A Series of Completed Actions

We use the Simple Past to list a series of completed actions in the past. These actions happen 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and so on.

Examples:

• I finished work, walked to the beach, and found a nice place to swim.
• He arrived from the airport at 8:00, checked into the hotel at 9:00, and met the others at 10:00.
• Did you add flour, pour in the milk, and then add the eggs?

USE 3 Duration in Past

The Simple Past can be used with a duration which starts and stops in the past. A duration is a longer action often indicated by expressions such as: for two years, for five minutes, all day, all year, etc.

Examples:

• I lived in Brazil for two years.
• Shauna studied Japanese for five years.
• They sat at the beach all day.
• They did not stay at the party the entire time.
• We talked on the phone for thirty minutes.
• A: How long did you wait for them?
  B: We waited for one hour.

Irregular verbs test


http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/irregular_verbs/crossword_6_7.htm


http://www.englisch-hilfen.de/en/exercises/irregular_verbs/find_regular2.htm