PRESENT PERFECT SIMPLE vs PRESENT PERFECT CONTINUOUS

Form

Present Perfect Simple	Present Perfect Progressive
irregular verbs: form of 'have' + 3rd column of irregular verbs Example: I / you / we / they have spoken he / she / it has spoken regular verbs: form of 'have' + infinitive + ed Example: I / you / we / they have worked he / she / it has worked	form of 'have' + been + verb + ing   Example: I / you / we / they have been speaking he / she / it has been speaking
Exceptions
Exceptions when adding 'ed' : when the final letter is e, only add d Example: love - loved after a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubled Example: admit - admitted final l is always doubled in British English (not in American English) Example: travel - travelled after a consonant, final y becomes i (but: not after a vowel) Example: worry - worried but: play - played	Exceptions when adding 'ing' : silent e is dropped. (but: does not apply for -ee) Example: come - coming aber: agree - agreeing after a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubled Example: sit - sitting after a vowel, the final consonant l is doubled in British English (but not in American English). Example: travel - travelling final ie becomes y. Example: lie - lying

Use

Both tenses are used to express that an action began in the past and is still going on or has just finished. In many cases, both forms are correct, but there is often a difference in meaning: We use the Present Perfect Simple mainly to express that an action is completed or to emphasise the result. We use the Present Perfect Progressive to emphasise the duration or continuous course of an action.

Result or duration?

Do you want to express what has happened so far or how long an action has been going on yet?

Present Perfect SimplE	Present Perfect Progressive
Result (what / how much / how often) I have written 5 letters. / I have been to London twice.	Duration (how long) I have been writing for an hour.

Certain verbs

The following verbs are usually only used in Present Perfect Simple (not in the progressive form).

• state: be, have (for possession only)

Example: We have been on holiday for two weeks.

• senses: feel, hear, see, smell, taste, touch

Example: He has touched the painting.

• brain work: believe, know, think, understand

Example: I have known him for 3 years.

Emphasis on completion or duration?

Do you want to emphasise the completion of an action or its continuous course (how has somebody spent his time)?

Present Perfect Simple	Present Perfect Progressive
Emphasis on completion I have done my homework. (Meaning: My homework is completed now.)	Emphasis on duration I have been doing my homework. (Meaning: That's how I have spent my time. It does not matter whether the homework is completed now.)

Result or side effect?

Do you want to express that a completed action led to a desired result or that the action had an unwanted side effect?

Present Perfect Simple	Present Perfect Progressive
desired result I have washed the car. (Result: The car is clean now.)	unwanted side effect Why are you so wet? - I have been washing the car. (side effect: I became wet when I was washing the car. It does not matter whether the car is clean now.)

Time + negation: last time or beginning of an action?

In negative sentences: Do you want to express how much time has past since the last time the action took place or since the beginning of the action?

Present Perfect Simple	Present Perfect Progressive
since the last time I haven't played that game for years. (Meaning: It's years ago that I last played that game.)	since the beginning I haven't been playing that game for an hour, only for 10 minutes. (Meaning: It's not even an hour ago that I started to play that game.)

Permanent or temporary?

If an action is still going on and we want to express that it is a permanent situation, we would usually use the Present Perfect Simple. For temporary situations, we would prefer the Present Perfect Progressive. This is not a rule, however, only a tendency.

Present Perfect Simple	Present Perfect Progressive
permanent James has lived in this town for 10 years. (Meaning: He is a permanent resident of this town.)	temporary James has been living here for a year. (Meaning: This situation is only temporary. Maybe he is an exchange student and only here for one or two years.)

Signal words

Present Perfect Simple	Present Perfect Progressive
how often ... times	how long since for

Exercises on Present Perfect Simple and Present Perfect Progressive

EXERCISE ONE

EXERCISE TWO

EXERCISE THREE

 

FRIENDS SCENE (ENGLISH SUBTITLES)

NUMBERS AND FIGURES.

NUMBERS IN ENGLISH

21 → 99

Numbers between 21 to 99 should be hyphenated
21 : twenty-one
48 : forty-eight
92 : ninety-two

100 → 999

“ hundred” is invariable when preceded by a numeral.
100 : one hundred
200 : two hundred

“Two hundred people were there.”
But “Ø Hundreds of people were there.”

“and” or no “and”?

100 : a hundred / one hundred / a hundred (With large numbers it is usually one hundred ... but in other contexts a hundred ... is more natural.
101 : one hundred and one (UK) / one hundred one (US)
110 : one hundred and ten (UK) / one hundred ten (US)
200 : two hundred
201 : two hundred and one (UK) / two hundred one (US)
210 : two hundred and ten (UK) / two hundred ten (US)
…

1,000 → 9,999

“ thousand” is invariable when preceded by a numeral.
1,000 : one thousand
2,000 : two thousand

“Two thousand people were there.”
But “Ø Thousands of people were there.”

“and” or no “and”?

1,000 : one thousand
1,001 : one thousand and one (UK) / one thousand one (US)
1,010 : one thousand and ten (UK) / one thousand two (US)
1,100 : one thousand one hundred
1,110 : one thousand one hundred and ten (UK) / one thousand one hundred ten (US)


10,000 → 99,999

Basically it’s always the same as above.

10,000 : ten thousand
10,001 : ten thousand and one (UK) / ten thousand one (US)
10,010 : ten thousand and ten (UK) / ten thousand one (US)
10,100 : ten thousand one hundred
10,110 : ten thousand one hundred and ten (UK) / ten thousand one hundred ten (US)

100,000 → 999,999

100,000 : one hundred thousand
100,001 : one hundred thousand and one (UK) / one hundred thousand one (US)
100,010 : one hundred thousand and ten (UK) / one hundred thousand ten (US)
100,100 : one hundred thousand one hundred
101,000 : one hundred and one thousand (UK) / one hundred one thousand (US)
110,000 : one hundred and ten thousand (UK) / one hundred ten thousand (US)

1,000,000 → 999,999,999

“ million” is invariable when preceded by a numeral.

1,000,000 : one million
2,000,000 : two million

“This project cost two million dollars.”
But “This project cost Ø millions of dollars.”

1,000,000 : one million
1,000,001 : one million and one (UK) / one billion one (US)
1,000,010 : one million and ten (UK) / one billion ten (US)
1,000,100 : one million one hundred
1,001,000 : one million one thousand
1,010,000 : one million ten thousand
1,100,000 : one million one hundred thousand
1,110,000 : one million one hundred and ten thousand (UK) / one million one hundred ten thousand (US)
1,111,000 : one million one hundred and eleven thousand (UK) / one million one hundred eleven thousand (US)
1,111,100 : one million one hundred and eleven thousand one hundred (UK) / one million one hundred eleven thousand one hundred (US)
1,111,110: one million one hundred and eleven thousand one hundred and ten (UK) / one million one hundred eleven thousand one hundred ten (US)

1,000,000,000 and above

“ billion” is invariable when preceded by a numeral.

1,000,000,000 : one billion
2,000,000,000 : two billion

“This project cost two billion dollars.”
But “This project cost Ø billions of dollars.”

1,100,000,000 : one billion one hundred million
… (combine with what was said above)

Note:
Even in British English, “one billion” is now understood as one thousand million (1,000,000,000), not a million million (1,000,000,000,000).


Place of the commas and dots

The comma is used to separate thousands:
1,000 (one thousand)
45,000 (forty-five thousand)
100,000 (one hundred thousand)
1,000,000 (one million)
...

The dot is used to separate decimals
4.7 (four point seven)

→ 1,004.75

 

 

Simple Past – Present Perfect Simple

EXERCISE ONE
EXERCISE TWO 
EXERCISE THREE

Form:

Simple Past	Present Perfect Simple
irregular verbs: see 2nd column of irregular verbs Example: I spoke	irregular verbs: form of 'have' + 3rd column of irregular verbs Example: I / you / we / they have spoken he / she / it has spoken
regular verbs: infinitive + ed Example: I worked	regular verbs: form of 'have' + infinitive + ed Example: I / you / we / they have worked he / she / it has worked
Exceptions
Exceptions when adding 'ed': when the final letter is e, only add d Example: love - loved after a short, stressed vowel, the final consonant is doubled Example: admit - admitted final l is always doubled in British English (not in American English) Example: travel - travelled after a consonant, final y becomes i (but: not after a vowel) Example: worry - worried but: play - played

Use

In British English, the use of Simple Past and Present Perfect is quite strict. As soon as a time expression in the past is given, you have to use Simple Past. If there are no signal words, you must decide if we just talk about an action in the past or if its consequence in the present is important.

Note that the following explanations and exercises refer to British English only. In American English, you can normally use Simple Past instead of Present Perfect. We cannot accept this in our exercises, however, as this would lead to confusions amongst those who have to learn the differences.

Certain time in the past or just / already / yet?

Do you want to express that an action happened at a certain time in the past (even if it was just a few seconds ago) or that an action has just / already / not yet happened?

Simple Past	Present Perfect Simple
certain time in the past Example: I phoned Mary 2 minutes ago.	just / already / not yet Example: I have just phoned Mary.

Certain event in the past or how often so far?

Do you want to express when a certain action took place or whether / how often an action has happened till now?

Simple Past	Present Perfect Simple
certain event in the past Example: He went to Canada last summer.	whether / how often till now Example: Have you ever been to Canada? / I have been to Canada twice.

  Emphasis on action or result?

Do you just want to express what happened in the past? Or do you want to emphasise the result (a past action's consequence in the present)?

Simple Past	Present Perfect Simple
Emphasis on action Example: I bought a new bike. (just telling what I did in the past.)	Emphasis on result Example: I have bought a new bike. (With this sentence I actually want to express that I have a new bike now.)

Signal Words

Simple Past	Present Perfect Simple
yesterday ... ago in 1990 the other day last ...	just already up to now until now / till now ever (not) yet so far lately / recently

GREATEST MOVIE MOMENTS(3): "HOUSTON WE´VE GOT A PROBLEM", APOLLO XIII

GREATEST MOVIE MOMENTS (2): Forrest Gump - "Life is like a box of chocolates"

FUTURE TENSES IN ENGLISH

Future tenses

There are several different ways in English that you can talk about the future. This page is an introduction to the most important ones:

Predictions/statements of fact

The auxiliary verb will is used in making predictions or simple statements of fact about the future.

• The sun will rise at 6.30 tomorrow.
• Lunch break today will be 10 minutes longer than usual.
• In the year 2050 all students will have their own computers in school.
• If you help me, I will help you.
• Do you think she will come soon?
• You won't pass your exams if you don't start working harder.
• I know my parents won't let me go to the party.
• Will it snow for Christmas?
• I know she's sick, but will she be back in school tomorrow?

Intentions

The auxiliary verb going to is used in talking about intentions. (An intention is a plan for the future that you have already thought about.)

• We're going to buy a new car next month.
• I'm going to work in a bank when I leave school.
• In the new year I'm going to stop eating so much junk.
• He's not going to go to the dance. He's got too much work.
• I'm not going to watch TV until my science project is finished.
• Are you going to play basketball after school?
• What are you going to have for lunch today?

Note: going to is often used in the past tense to talk about an unfulfilled intention. Examples: I was going to study for my grammar test, but I had no time. / He was going to call you, but he couldn't find his mobile phone. / My grandmother was going to visit us, but she fell and broke her arm.

Arrangements

The present continuous tense is used in talking about arrangements. (An arrangement is is a plan for the future that you have already thought about and discussed with someone else.)

• I'm meeting my mother at the airport tomorrow.
• Our grandparents are visiting us this Christmas.
• Sorry, I can't stay after school today; I'm playing tennis with Jun-Sik.
• My sister's going to the dentist tomorrow.
• I'm not returning home for the holidays, so I can come to your party after all!
• Are you doing anything on Sunday morning?
• Do you know if he is going to the dance with Maiko next week?

Scheduled events

The present simple tense is usually used to refer to future events that are scheduled (and outside of our control).

• Hurry up! The train departs in 10 minutes.
• I leave Frankfurt at 5 o'clock in the morning and arrive in New York
at midnight the next day.
• She has an appointment with the headmaster after school today.
• There's no need to hurry. The train doesn't leave for another 30 minutes.
• When does the meeting begin?
•  
• EXERCISE ONE
• EXERCISE TWO 
• EXERCISE THREE  
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