The present perfect tense is formed with have or has + the past participle — I have finished, she has gone, we haven't eaten, have you seen it? — and it connects the past to the present. Use it for life experience (I've been to Peru), change up to now (Prices have risen), situations that started in the past and still continue (We've lived here since 2018), recent events (She's just left), and past actions with a result now (I've broken my wrist, so I can't type).
This guide covers the form (affirmative, negative, questions, contractions), each use with examples, the signal words that usually go with the tense, irregular past participles, and the American versus British difference with just, already and yet. The 30 exercises below check the form first, then the uses, then the trickier cases — every answer is marked instantly with a short explanation.
Present Perfect Tense Quiz: 30 Questions
Warm-up · form: have/has + past participle
Core · the five uses and their signal words
Challenge · stative verbs, passive, time words and dialect
Answer key and explanationsOpen after you finish the quiz.
- 1. have livedPlural subjects (my parents) take have, and the past participle of live is lived. 'are living ... for twenty years' is wrong because a duration up to now needs a perfect form.
- 2. It hasWhen 's is followed by a past participle (rained), it is the contraction of has: It has rained all day. 'It is rained' is not a possible English sentence.
- 3. haven't finishedThe negative is have/has + not + past participle, and I takes have: I haven't finished. 'didn't finished' mixes two forms; after did the verb must be the base form.
- 4. Has / runQuestions invert the auxiliary: Has + subject + past participle. Maria is third-person singular (has), and the participle of run is run (run–ran–run), not ran.
- 5. have risenPrices is plural, so have; rise is irregular (rise–rose–risen). raise needs an object (they have raised prices), so 'prices have raised' is wrong here.
- 6. She has broken her phone.The participle of break is broken (break–broke–broken), and she takes has. broke is the past simple and cannot follow has in standard English.
- 7. haveShort answers repeat the auxiliary from the question: Have you ...? — Yes, I have / No, I haven't. 'Yes, I haven't' contradicts itself, and I never takes has.
- 8. has justThe film is singular, so has, and just goes between the auxiliary and the participle: has just started. 'is just started' uses the wrong auxiliary for an active verb.
- 9. readread is irregular: read–read–read, spelled the same in all three forms but pronounced /red/ in the past and participle. 'readed' does not exist.
- 10. have / beenHow many times asks about experience up to now, so present perfect: have you been. went is the past simple and been cannot follow did.
- 11. have never riddenLife experience up to now (never) uses the present perfect, and the participle of ride is ridden (ride–rode–ridden). I takes have, not has.
- 12. has improvedsince last summer measures change from a past point up to now, which needs the present perfect: has improved. since does not combine with the present simple or continuous here.
- 13. have knownA situation that started in the past and still continues takes the present perfect with since: have known. know is stative, so 'are knowing' is wrong, and 'know since' is a common learner error.
- 14. sincesince + a starting point (2015, Monday, I was born); for + a length of time (six years). 'from 2015' needs an end point (from 2015 to 2020), and ago belongs with the past simple.
- 15. forsix months is a length of time, so for. since would need a starting point (since March). 'six months ago' names a finished moment and needs the past simple.
- 16. justjust means a very short time ago and sits between have and the participle: I've just cleaned. yet goes at the end of negatives and questions; ever is for questions about experience.
- 17. have already seenalready with a result relevant now (no need to watch it) takes the present perfect: have already seen. saw is not a participle, and had seen would need an earlier past reference point.
- 18. yetyet is used in negatives and questions for something expected that has not happened up to now, and it usually goes at the end: hasn't arrived yet.
- 19. have brokenA past action with a result now (I can't type) is a core present perfect use: I have broken my wrist. broke is the past simple, and I takes have.
- 20. have drunkthis morning is still in progress (it's only 10 a.m.), so it is unfinished time: have drunk. The participle of drink is drunk (drink–drank–drunk), not drank.
- 21. has grownChange from a past point up to now (since ...) takes the present perfect: has grown (grow–grew–grown). The since-clause itself uses the past simple (opened) because it names the starting moment.
- 22. metAfter have + subject, use the past participle: Have you ever met ...? meet is irregular (meet–met–met), so the past and participle look the same.
- 23. has belongedfor over a century up to now needs a perfect form, and belong is a stative verb, so it stays in the simple form: has belonged. Stative verbs are not normally used in continuous forms.
- 24. I have finished the course this month.this month is an unfinished period, so it works with the present perfect. in May, last month and two weeks ago name finished times, which need the past simple (I finished the course in May).
- 25. have lostThe frame 'This is the first/second/third time ...' takes the present perfect because it counts occurrences up to now: have lost. had lost belongs after 'It was the third time ...'.
- 26. have you writtenHow many + so far counts completed units up to now, which needs the present perfect simple: have you written. The continuous form focuses on the activity, not the number completed.
- 27. haven't been publishedResults do not publish themselves, so the passive is needed: have/has + been + past participle. results is plural (haven't), and the participle is published, not publish.
- 28. Have you eaten yet?British English expects the present perfect with yet: Have you eaten yet? 'Did you eat yet?' is common in American English but not standard British usage. ate is not a participle.
- 29. When did you arrive?When asks for a specific finished time, so it takes the past simple: When did you arrive? The present perfect cannot be used with when in a question about a past moment.
- 30. haven't hadlately and recently describe a period up to now, so they go with the present perfect: haven't had. had had would need an earlier past reference point.
Present Perfect Form: Have/Has + Past Participle
Every present perfect sentence has two parts: the auxiliary have (or has for he, she, it and singular nouns) and the past participle of the main verb. Regular verbs make the participle with -ed (worked, played, stopped), so it looks the same as the past simple. Irregular verbs have their own participle, and that is where most mistakes happen.
In speech and informal writing the auxiliary is usually contracted: I've, you've, we've, they've, he's, she's, it's. Negatives add not (haven't, hasn't), questions put have/has before the subject, and short answers repeat the auxiliary.
- Affirmative: I/you/we/they have worked — he/she/it has worked.
- Negative: I haven't finished. She hasn't called.
- Question: Have you finished? Has she called? How long have they lived here?
- Short answers: Yes, I have. / No, she hasn't.
- Contractions: I've, he's ('s + participle = has, not is), we haven't.
- Passive: have/has been + participle — The road has been closed.
If you see 's before a past participle (She's gone, It's stopped), read it as has. If it comes before an adjective, noun or -ing form (She's tired, It's raining), it is is.
When to Use the Present Perfect: Five Uses
All five uses share one idea: the speaker is looking at the past from the present. The time is not stated as a finished point, or the time period is still open, or the result matters now.
- Life experience (no time given): I've been to Peru. Have you ever tried kimchi? She's never driven a car.
- Change over time: Your English has improved. The city has grown a lot.
- Situations continuing to now, with for or since: We've lived here for ten years / since 2016.
- Recent events, often with just, already, yet: I've just seen Tom. Has the parcel arrived yet?
- Past action, result now: I've lost my keys (I can't get in). He's broken his leg (he's on crutches).
- Unfinished time periods: I've had three coffees today. We haven't had a holiday this year.
If you want to name a finished time (yesterday, last week, in 2019, two days ago), switch to the past simple. The full comparison is drilled in the Present Perfect vs Past Simple Exercises.
Signal Words: For, Since, Just, Already, Yet, Ever, Never
These words often appear with the present perfect. They are strong clues, not guarantees — the time frame of the whole sentence still decides the tense.
- for + a length of time: for two hours, for ages, for a long time.
- since + a starting point: since Monday, since 2015, since I was a child.
- just (very recently), between have and the participle: I've just eaten.
- already (sooner than expected), usually mid-position: She's already left.
- yet (expected but not happened), at the end of negatives and questions: Have you finished yet?
- ever / never for experience: Have you ever been to Japan? I've never seen snow.
- so far, up to now, recently, lately, this week, today: I haven't heard from her lately.
Common Irregular Past Participles
Most present perfect errors are wrong participles, usually the past simple used in its place (I have went, she has ate). Learn irregular verbs in three forms: base, past simple, past participle.
- be–was/were–been, go–went–gone, do–did–done, see–saw–seen
- eat–ate–eaten, write–wrote–written, take–took–taken, give–gave–given
- break–broke–broken, speak–spoke–spoken, drive–drove–driven, ride–rode–ridden
- begin–began–begun, drink–drank–drunk, swim–swam–swum, run–ran–run
- Same in all forms: put, cut, read (spelled the same, said /red/), let, hit
- Same past and participle: buy–bought–bought, make–made–made, meet–met–met
If the verb changes its vowel in three steps (begin–began–begun, drink–drank–drunk), the participle is always the third form. 'I have drank' and 'she has began' are among the most common slips.
American vs British English: Just, Already and Yet
British English normally uses the present perfect with just, already and yet: I've just eaten. Have you finished yet? American English often uses the past simple in the same sentences: I just ate. Did you eat yet? Both are standard in their own variety, so do not mark the American form as an error in American writing.
What is wrong in both varieties is a broken form — I have just ate, Did you ate yet? If you write for an international audience or for British exams, the present perfect is the safe choice with these words.
- BrE: She's already left. — AmE: She already left. (also She's already left)
- BrE: Have you seen it yet? — AmE: Did you see it yet? (also Have you seen it yet?)
- Both: I've never been to Spain. (experience uses the present perfect in both)
Keep practicing
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you form the present perfect tense?
Use have or has + the past participle of the main verb. I, you, we and they take have; he, she, it and singular nouns take has: I have worked, she has gone. For negatives add not (haven't, hasn't), and for questions put have/has before the subject: Have you seen it? Has he called?
What is the difference between the present perfect and the past simple?
The present perfect connects a past action to now (I've lost my keys — I still don't have them), while the past simple places an action at a finished time (I lost my keys yesterday). If you name a finished time such as yesterday, last year or two days ago, use the past simple. The Present Perfect vs Past Simple Exercises page drills this choice in detail.
Can I use the present perfect with yesterday or ago?
No. yesterday, ago, last week and in 2019 refer to finished times, so they take the past simple: I saw her yesterday, not I have seen her yesterday. Use the present perfect with unfinished or open time expressions such as today, this week, so far, ever, never, for and since.
Check Your Own Present Perfect Sentences
Paste your writing into PromGee's free grammar checker to catch wrong participles like 'have went' and tense mix-ups with time words, with a short explanation for each suggested fix.
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