H2 Present perfect vs Past perfect

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H2 Present perfect vs Past perfect

Understand when to use each one, how to form them, and why they matter for clear, confident communication

Learning goals

At the end of this lesson you

• will be able to describe their life experiences using the present perfec

• will be able to ask and answer questions about personal experiences

• Will be able to talk about things that have recently happened in their lives using words like just, already, and yet.

• will be able to explain how past experiences affect their lives now.

What does 'I have eaten sushi' indicate?

A

It refers to a future event.

B

It means sushi is bad.

C

It is about eating now.

D

It is connected to past experience.

"I had eaten sushi before I tried ramen."
What does this tell us? How many events are there? Which happened first?

What are past participles?

P

The Present Perfect

The present perfect connects the past to the present

We use it when a past action or experience is still relevant, important, or connected to right now.

When to Use It

• Life experiences (no specific time): "I've been to Japan."

• Recent events with present results: "She's broken her leg."

• Actions continuing until now: "We've lived here for ten years."

• With: ever, never, already, yet, just, for, since

How to Form It

Subject + have / has + past participle

I have seen that film.

Has he ever eaten duck in China?

Present perfect: Signal words

For/since

Already/yet

ever/never

just/recently

She ______ (not/visit) her grandmother this month.

A

did not visit

B

has not visited

C

doesn't visit

D

hasn't visiting

______ you ever ______ (eat) Korean food?

A

eaten

B

Did

C

eat

D

Have

We ______ (live) in this city since 2018.

A

has lived

B

lived

C

have lived

D

live

Find the mistake and correct it:

She has went to the market.

Find the mistake and correct it:

I have seen him yesterday.

What is the past perfect?

The past perfect is used to show that one past action happened before another past action. Think of it as the "further back" past — the past of the past.

When to Use It

• To show which of two past events happened first: "When I arrived, the film had already started."

• Reported speech with a past reporting verb: "She said she had lost her keys."

• Third conditional: "If I had studied, I would have passed."

• With: before, after, when, by the time, already, never

What is the past perfect?

How to Form It

Subject + had + past participle

I had finished dinner before she arrived.
They had never met before that day.
By 9am, he had already left.

Had + subject + past participle?

Had you met him before?

Had you had that for previously?

She was late because she ______ the bus.

A

has missed

B

had missed

C

was missing

D

missed

We couldn’t watch the movie because it ______ already ______.

A

was starting

B

had already started

C

already started

D

has already started

He was happy because he ______ the exam.

A

had passed

B

has passed

C

was passing

D

passed

They went home because they ______ their work.

A

were finishing

B

finished

C

have finished

D

had finished