Inglês,,,,

PRESENT PERFECT

The present perfect is used to say what has happened recently and has an effect on the present moment. We often use 'just', 'yet' and 'already' to express the relationship to the present moment.

Examples

Have you seen Mary yet?
They've already had dinner.
She's just been to the dentist's.

The present perfect is also used to express something which has happened up to the present moment of time.

Examples
Have you worked here for a long time?
Peter's lived here since 1987.
She hasn't had much fun this week.

Positive Form

Subject + have + past participle + object(s)

Examples

Peter's lived here since 1987.
We've been very busy today.

Negative Form

Subject + have + not + past participle + object(s)

Examples

I haven't been to class very often this month.
She hasn't had much fun this week.

Question Form

(Wh?) + have + subject + past participle?

Examples

Have you worked here for a long time?
Where have you been?

Present Perfect for Unspecified Past

When speaking about an experience that has happened at an UNSPECIFIED point in time before the present moment use the present perfect.

Examples
I've been to New York three times.
They've lived in many places.
She's studied in London.

NOTE: In this use of the present perfect, we are talking about things that have happened up to the present moment. Whenever you speak about something that has happened up to now without giving a precise point in time, use the present perfect.

Use of 'For', 'Since' and 'How long'

Use 'for' to indicate a duration or period of time.

Examples

He has lived here for seven years.
We have been here for six weeks.
Shirley has played tennis for a long time.

Use 'since' to indicate a specific point in time.

Examples

I've worked here since 2004.
She's gone to dancing lessons since April.
They've been unhappy since they left college.

Use 'How long' in the question form to ask about duration.

Examples

How long have you played the piano?
How long has he worked here?
How long has she been with you?

PAST SIMPLE

Use the past simple to talk about activities or routines which take place at a specified time in the past. Notice that all subjects take the same conjugation of the verb. Regular verbs end in '-ed'.

visit - visited
enjoy - enjoyed



Irregular verbs have various forms and each verb needs to be learned.

see - saw
think - thought

The past simple is used to express a finished past action which occurs at a specific moment in the past.

Examples

She visited Iran last month.
They didn't go to Tom's party last weekend.
Where did you go on vacation last summer?

The following time signifiers often indicate a specific point in time.

last
ago
in ... (plus a year or month)
yesterday
when ... (plus a phrase)

Examples

They had lunch at home last week.
He left the company many years ago.
Susan bought a new car in May.
He telephoned his friend in Rome yesterday.
I played golf when I was a teenager.

Positive Form

Subject + past form of verb + object(s) + time

Examples

They flew to Chicago last month.
Peter completed his course three weeks ago.

Negative Form

Subject + did + not + base form of verb + object(s) + (time)

Examples

They didn't expect to see you at Christmas.
She didn't understand the question.

Question Form

(Wh?) + did + subject + base form of verb + (object(s))+ (time)?

Examples

Where did you study French?
When did you arrive last week?

PRESENT CONTINUOUS

Use the present continuous to speak about what is happening at the present moment in time.

Positive Form

Subject + to be + verb + ing + objects

Examples
He is watching TV.
They're playing tennis at the moment.

Negative Form

Subject + are not + verb + ing + objects

Examples
She isn't studying at the moment.
We aren't working now.

Question Form
Wh? + to BE + subject + verb + ing + objects ?

Examples
What are you doing?
Are you cooking dinner now?

NOTE: We use time expressions like 'at the moment, currently, this week - month' with this form of the present continuous.

Present Simple

Use the present simple to talk about activities or routines which take place on a regular basis.

Examples
I often go jogging on Saturdays.
He usually has coffee for breakfast.

Present Continuous

Use the present continuous to speak about what is happening at the present moment in time, around the present moment, or for a future scheduled event.

Examples
We're working on the Smith account this month.
She's watching TV at the moment.

Stative Verbs
Stative verbs are verbs which express a state. Action verbs are verbs which express something a person does.

Examples
I hope to see you soon. (stative verb) He is cooking dinner at the moment. (action verb)
Stative verbs cannot be used in the continuous forms. Here is a list of common stative verbs:
believe
understand
think (opinion)
want
hope
smell
taste
feel
sound
look
seem
appear

PAST SIMPLE OU PRESENT PERFECT

Sometimes the past simple and the present perfect are confused. It is important to remember that the past simple is used to express a finished past action which occurs at a specific moment in the past. The present perfect is used to express something that happened at an unspecified moment in the past. For example, if I visited Paris in 2004, I could express this in two ways:

Past Simple

I visited Paris in 2004.
I went to Paris a few years ago.

Note that the moment in time is specific - in 2004, a few years ago.

Present Perfect

I've been to Paris.
I've visited Paris.

In this case, the moment of my visit is not specific. I am speaking about an experience that I have had in my life up to this moment in time.

This is the key to understanding the difference between the past simple and the present perfect. The past simple expresses something which happened at a specific time in the past. The present perfect expresses something that I have experienced in my life without giving the exact time.



IRREGULAR VERBS IN THE PAST

The past form of regular verbs ends in 'ed'. Irregular verbs must be studied individually. Here is a list of past forms of some of the most common irregular verbs.

be - was/were
become - became
begin - began
break - broke
bring - brought
build - built
buy - bought
come - came
cost - cost
cut - cut
do - did
drink - drank
eat - ate
find - found
fly - flew
get - got
give - gave
go - went
have - had
keep - kept
know - knew
leave - left
make - made
meet - met
pay - paid
put - put
read - read
say - said
see - saw
sell - sold
send - sent
speak - spoke
spend - spent
take - took
teach - taught
tell - told
think - thought