PRESENT PERFECT TENSE
Subject + has/have + verb (past participle)
The present perfect tense refers to an action or state that either occurred at an indefinite time in the past (e.g., we have talked before) or began in the past and continued to the present time (e.g., he has grown impatient over the last hour). This tense is formed by have/has + the past participle.
Examples
1. Nuruddeen has eaten the food.
2. The students have gone home.
3. The timekeeper has rung the bell.
We can turn the above sentences into either interrogative or negative.
Examples
1. Has Nuruddeen eaten the food? Nuruddeen has not eaten the food.
2. Have the students gone home? The students have not gone home.
3. Has the timekeeper rung the bell? The timekeeper has not rung the bell.
NOTE: Present perfect tense is not used with a specific time
Examples
1. I have finished my PhD today. (wrong)
2. Nuru has seen a snake this morning. (wrong)
3. I have put away all the laundry at 10:00 this morning. (wrong)
4. They have delivered the letter yesterday. (wrong)
PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS
Subject + has/have been. + verb (ing)
The present perfect continuous tense (also known as the present perfect progressive tense) shows that something started in the past and continues at present. The present perfect continuous is formed using the construction has/have been + the present participle (root + -ing).
Examples
1. The dog has been barking since morning.
2. The students have been playing for 30 minutes.
3. I have been teaching for ten years.
SIMPLE PAST TENSE
Subject + verb in past form (-ed in regular verbs)
The simple past tense describes a completed activity that happened in the past. In other words, it started in the past and ended in the past. For example:
1. I watched the movie last night.
2. We saw a snake in the morning.
3. The man painted the house green.
PAST CONTINUOUS TENSE
The Past Continuous tense is essential in English. We use it to say what we were in the middle of doing at a particular moment in the past.
1. I was working at 10 pm last night.
2. They were not playing football at 9 am this morning.
3. What were you doing at 10 pm last night?
4. What were you doing when he arrived?
5. She was cooking when I telephoned her.
6. We were having dinner when it started to rain.
7. Rabiu went home early because it was snowing.
PAST PERFECT
Subject. + had + verb in past participle (eaten,taken, drunk, seen,flown,grown etc)
The past perfect tense describes a completed activity in the past. It is used to emphasize that an action was completed before another action took place. For example:
1. Musa had baked a cake before you arrived.
2. They had painted the fence before I had a chance to speak to them.
3. The boy had died before the doctor arrived.
4. I had worked with the company for five years before I resigned in 2019.
5. The students had played football before the rain started.
To be concluded
Nuru Aliyu
ATAP CONSULTS BAUCHI