The English Present Perfect tense is used to express actions which have already been completed, or
perfected, at the time of speaking or writing. In the examples given below, the verbs in the Present Perfect tense are underlined.
e.g. I
have done the work.
She
has answered half the questions.
In the first example, the use of the Present Perfect tense emphasizes the fact that, at the time of speaking or writing, the work has already been completed. In the second example, the use of the Present Perfect indicates that, at the time of speaking or writing, half the questions have been answered.
2. Formation of the present perfect: Regular verbsThe Present Perfect tense of any English verb is formed from the Simple Present of the auxiliary
to have, followed by what is generally referred to as the
past participle of the verb.
Most English verbs form the past participle in a regular, predictable manner. These verbs are commonly referred to as
regular verbs.
The past participle of a regular English verb is formed by adding the ending
ed to the bare infinitive of the verb. For instance, the past participle of the verb
to work is
worked.
Thus, the Present Perfect tense of the verb
to work is conjugated as follows:
I have worked |
you have worked |
he has worked |
she has worked |
it has worked |
we have worked |
they have worked |
The following contractions are often used in spoken English:
Without Contractions | With Contractions |
I have | I've |
you have | you've |
he has | he's |
she has | she's |
it has | it's |
we have | we've |
they have | they've |
It should be noted that the contractions for
he has,
she has and
it has are the same as the contractions for
he is,
she is and
it is.
3. Spelling rules for adding ed to form the past participleSome regular verbs change their spelling when the ending
ed is added to form the past participle.
a. Verbs ending in a silent eWhen a regular verb ends in a silent
e, only the letter
d must be added in order to form the past participle. For example:
Infinitive | Past Participle |
to close | closed |
to move | moved |
to please | pleased |
to receive | received |
b. Verbs ending in yWhen a regular verb ends in
y immediately preceded by a
consonant, the
y is changed to
i before the ending
ed is added. For example:
Infinitive | Past Participle |
to study | studied |
to rely | relied |
to carry | carried |
However, when a regular verb ends in
y immediately preceded by a
vowel, the
y is
not changed before the ending
ed is added. For example:
Infinitive | Past Participle |
to play | played |
to convey | conveyed |
to enjoy | enjoyed |
c. Verbs ending in a single consonant preceded by a single vowelThe rules concerning the doubling of final consonants which apply when adding the ending
ing to form the present participle also apply when adding the ending
ed to form the past participle.
Thus, when a one-syllable verb ends in a single consonant other than
w,
x or
y immediately preceded by a single vowel, the final consonant must be doubled before the ending
ed is added to form the past participle. In the following examples, the consonants which have been doubled are underlined. For example:
Infinitive | Past Participle |
to rub | rubbed |
to trim | trimmed |
to plan | planned |
to stop | stopped |
When a verb of more than one syllable ends in a single consonant other than
w,
x or
y immediately preceded by a single vowel, the final consonant is doubled before the ending
ed only when the last syllable of the verb is pronounced with the heaviest stress. In the following examples, the syllables pronounced with the heaviest stress are underlined. For example:
Infinitive | Past Participle |
to control | controlled |
to infer | inferred |
to occur | occurred |
to permit | permitted |
| |
to fasten | fastened |
to order | ordered |
to focus | focused |
to limit | limited |
In the first four examples, the last syllable of the verb is pronounced with the heaviest stress, and the final consonant is doubled before
ed is added. In the last four examples, the first syllable of the verb is pronounced with the heaviest stress, and the final consonant is not doubled before
ed is added.
The final consonants
w,
x and
y are never doubled when the ending
ed is added. For example:
Infinitive | Past Participle |
to follow | followed |
to box | boxed |
to portray | portrayed |
It should also be noted that final consonants immediately preceded by two vowels are not doubled when the ending
ed is added. For example:
Infinitive | Past Participle |
to greet | greeted |
to rain | rained |
to soak | soaked |
to treat | treated |
4. Pronunciation of the ed endingThe ending
ed is usually not pronounced as a separate syllable. For instance, in each of the following examples, both the bare infinitive and the past participle consist of one syllable. For example:
Bare Infinitive | Past Participle |
puff | puffed |
work | worked |
miss | missed |
watch | watched |
However, when the ending
ed is added to verbs which end in
d or
t, the
ed ending of the past participle is pronounced as a separate syllable. The reason for this is that the sounds of
d and
t are so similar to the sound of the
ed ending, that the ending must be pronounced as a separate syllable in order to be heard clearly.
In each of the following examples, the bare infinitive consists of one syllable; whereas the past participle consists of two syllables. For example:
Bare Infinitive | Past Participle |
add | added |
land | landed |
hunt | hunted |
wait | waited |
Similarly, when
d is added to verbs ending in a silent
e preceded by
d or
t, the final
ed of the past participle is pronounced as a separate syllable. In each of the following examples, the bare infinitive consists of one syllable; whereas the past participle consists of two syllables. For example:
Bare Infinitive | Past Participle |
fade | faded |
glide | glided |
cite | cited |
note | noted |