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1. Present Perfect The PRESENT PERFECT TENSE is formed with a present tense form of "to have" plus the past participle of the verb (which can be either regular or irregular in form). This tense indicates either that an action was completed (finished or "perfected") at some point in the past or that the action extends to the present:
Examples: For five generations, members of my family have been doctors. Vaughan has batted clean-up since he came to the Redsox. She has swum the English Channel every summer. 2. Future Perfect The FUTURE PERFECT TENSE indicates that an action will have been completed (finished or "perfected") at some point in the future. This tense is formed with "will" plus "have" plus the past participle of the verb (which can be either regular or irregular in form): "I will have spent all my money by this time next year. I will have run successfully in three marathons if I can finish this one."
Examples: By this time next week, I will have worked on this project for twenty days. Before he sees his publisher, Charles will have finished four chapters in his new novel. How long will it have been since we were together? 3. Past Perfect The PAST PERFECT TENSE indicates that an action was completed (finished or "perfected") at some point in the past before something else happened. This tense is formed with the past tense form of "to have" (HAD) plus the past participle of the verb (which can be either regular or irregular in form): I had walked two miles by lunchtime. I had run three other marathons before entering the Boston Marathon .
Examples: Aunt Glad had invested heavily in the air-conditioning industry before the Great Crash of 1988. She had swum the English Channel every summer until 1997. How long had it been since you saw each other? 4. Present Perfect Progressive The PRESENT PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSE indicates a continuous action that has been finished at some point in the past or that was initiated in the past and continues to happen. The action is usually of limited duration and has some current relevance: "She has been running and her heart is still beating fast." The present perfect progressive frequently is used to describe an event of the recent past; it is often accompanied by just in this usage: "It has just been raining."
Examples: Maria has been writing her dissertation for the last six years[, but she finished yesterday]. Have we been telling the truth to consumers about tobacco? Haven't we been lying to teenagers about smoking? 5. Future Perfect progressive The FUTURE PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSE indicates a continuous action that will be completed at some point in the future. This tense is formed with the modal "WILL" plus the modal "HAVE" plus "BEEN" plus the present participle of the verb (with an -ing ending): "Next Thursday, I will have been working on this project.
Examples: By the time he finishes this semester, Geraldo will have been studying nothing but parasites for four years. Will they have been testing these materials in the lab before we even get there? 6. Past Perfect Progressive The PAST PERFECT PROGRESSIVE TENSE indicates a continuous action that was completed at some point in the past. This tense is formed with the modal "HAD" plus "BEEN," plus the present participle of the verb (with an -ing ending): "I had been working in the garden all morning. George had been painting his house for weeks, but he finally gave up."
Examples: Hemingway had been losing his self-confidence for years before the publication of Old Man and the Sea. Had they been cheating on the exams before the school put monitors in the classroom? |
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