Present perfect

Definitely a pain in the back for foreigners

The present perfect simple is composed of has/have + past participle.

When we say that something ‘has happened’, it’s usually new information:

“Ow! I’ve cut my finger.”

The road is closed. There’s been an accident.

Also use the present perfect both if it’s the first time something has happened and if something has happened before:

“It’s the first time I have seen a grammarillo.”

“Dani has forgotten her passport. This is the second time this has happened.”

When you use the present perfect, there’s a connection with now. An action in the past has a result now:

“Where’s your key?”       “I don’t know. I’ve lost it.” (= I don’t have it now)

“Is Raoul here?”    “No, he’s gone out.” (= he’s out now)

Similarly, you use it when you talk about a period of time that continues from the past until now:

“Have you ever seen a grammarillo?”

“Have you read this grammar blog Myriam was talking about?”

Indicators for this case include recently, in the last few days, since, etc.:

“Have you heard anything from Alex recently?”

“Everything is going well. We haven’t had any problems so far.”

“I’m hungry. I haven’t eaten since lunch.”

“We haven’t seen each other for a long time.”

Similarly, use the present perfect with today, this evening, this year, etc. when these periods are not finished at the time of speaking:

“I’ve drunk six cups of coffee today.”

“I haven’t seen the cat this morning? Have you?”

You usually use the present perfect with just, already and yet:

Just = a short time ago:

“Are you hungry?”          “No, I’ve just eaten.”

Already = something happened sooner than expected:

“What time is Mark leaving?”   “He’s already left.”

Yet = until now/you’re expecting something to happen. It’s only used in questions and negative sentences:

“Has it stopped raining yet?”

Been to = visited:

“I’ve never been to Luxembourg. Have you been there?”

Note the difference between gone (to) and been (to):

“My family is on holiday. The bastards have gone to Italy.” (= they are there now or on their way there)

Dani is back home. She has been to Italy. (= she has now come back)

To be honest, nowadays, the rules about using the present perfect are becoming more and more relaxed, so you could also use the past simple in these examples:

“Is Raoul here?”    “No, he went out.”

“Are you hungry?”          “No, I just ate.”