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Perfect Tenses
What Are the Perfect
Tenses?
Perfect tense is a category of verb tense
used to describe completed actions. It
covers the past perfect tense, the present
perfect tense, and the future perfect tense. It
is sometimes called the complete tense.
Table of Contents
Examples of Verbs in a Perfect
Tense
Forming the Perfect Tenses
The Perfect Tenses in the Past,
Present, and Future
Interactive Verb Conjugation Tables
The Perfect Aspect
Why Perfect Tenses Are Important
Test Time!
Examples of Verbs in a
Perfect Tense
Here are some examples of verbs in a
perfect tense:
The Past Perfect Tense
I had gone.
He had seen.
The Present Perfect Tense
I have gone.
He has seen.
The Future Perfect Tense
I will have gone.
He will have seen.
Forming the Perfect
Tenses
The perfect tenses are formed using a form
of the auxiliary verb "to have" and the past
participle. For example:
Forming the Past Perfect Tense
"had" + [past participle]
He had spoken.
Forming the Present Perfect
Tense
"has" or "have" + [past participle]
She has spoken.
They have spoken.
Forming the Future Perfect
Tense
"will have" + [past participle]
He will have spoken.
The Perfect Tenses in the
Past, Present, and Future
Here are the 12 tenses again. This time, the
tenses are ordered under the headings past
tense, present tense, and future tense. The
perfect (or complete) tenses are shaded in
yellow.
The 4 Past Tenses Example
simple past tense I went
past progressive tense I was going
past perfect tense I had gone
past perfect I had been
progressive tense going
The 4 Present Tenses Example
simple present tense I go
present progressive I am going
tense
present perfect tense I have gone
present perfect I have been
progressive tense going
The 4 Future Tenses Example
simple future tense I will go
future progressive I will be going
tense
future perfect tense I will have
gone
future perfect I will have
progressive tense been going
Interactive Verb
Conjugation Tables
The tables below show all 12 tenses so you
can see the perfect tenses among the
other tenses. (You can change the verb by
clicking one of the green buttons.)
Top 10 Regular Verbs
want look use work start try
ask need talk help
Top 10 Irregular Verbs
see say go come know get
give become find think
All 4 Past Tenses
Past Perfect
Simple Past Progressive Past Perfect
Person Progressive
Past Tense Tense
Tense
I had been seeing
saw was seeing had seen
you had been seeing
saw were seeing had seen
he/she/it had been seeing
saw was seeing had seen
we had been seeing
saw were seeing had seen
you had been seeing
saw were seeing had seen
they had been seeing
saw were seeing had seen
The The past The past The past
simple progressive perfect tense perfect
past tense tense is for an is for progressive
is for a ongoing activity emphasizing tense is for
completed in the past. that an action showing that
activity Often, it is used was an ongoing
that to set the scene completed action in the
happened for another before past has
in the action. another took ended.
past. place.
All 4 Present Tenses
Present
Simple Present Perfect Present Perfect
Person Progressive
Present Tense Progressive Tense
Tense
I
see am seeing have seen have been seeing
you
see are seeing have seen have been seeing
he/she/it
sees is seeing has seen has been seeing
we
see are seeing have seen have been seeing
you
see are seeing have seen have been seeing
they
see are seeing have seen have been seeing
The The The present The present perfect
simple present perfect tense is progressive tense is
present progressive for an action for a continuous
tense tense is for that began in activity that began in
is an ongoing the past. the past and
mostly action in (Often, the continues into the
for a the action present (or finished
fact or present. continues into very recently).
a habit. the present.)
All 4 Future Tenses
Future
Simple Future Perfect Future Perfect
Person Progressive
Future Tense Progressive Tense
Tense
I will be seeing
will see will have seen will have been seeing
you will be seeing
will see will have seen will have been seeing
he/she/it will be seeing
will see will have seen will have been seeing
we will be seeing
will see will have seen will have been seeing
you will be seeing
will see will have seen will have been seeing
they will be seeing
will see will have seen will have been seeing
The The future The future The future perfect
simple progressive perfect tense is progressive tense
future tense is for for an action is for an ongoing
tense is an ongoing that will have action that will be
for an action that been completed at some
action will occur in completed at specified time in
that will the future. some point in the future.
occur in the future.
the
future.
The Perfect Aspect
The term perfect aspect is used to group all
verbs (past, present, and future) in the
perfect tenses. (Remember that the aspect
of a verb is determined by whether its action
is ongoing or completed.)
Show me an infographic
Read more about aspect.
Why Perfect Tenses Are
Important
Native English speakers can use all twelve
tenses without giving the grammar a second
thought. However, if you're learning or
teaching English, you must spend time
learning the tenses because expressing
when something occurs is a fundamental
communication skill. Remember though that
tenses do not just tell us whether something
is a past, present, or future action. They
also tell us whether the action is habitual,
completed, or ongoing (called the aspects).
The trick to learning tenses is mastering the
following:
The verb "to be" in all its forms (am,
is, are, was, were, will be)
The verb "to have" in all its forms
(has, have, had, will have)
Present participles, i.e., the "ing"
form of verbs (e.g., playing, thinking,
eating)
Past participles (e.g., played,
thought, eaten)
Key Points
Learning or teaching English? Get
your head in those verb tables!
The past perfect tense is a
particularly common tense. So, if
you're prioritizing your learning of
tenses, make sure that tense is
among the first ones you learn.
Good luck.
This page was written
by Craig Shrives.
Test Time!
^ back to top ^
This test is printable and sendable
0 0
1 not attempted
True or false? The perfect tense is a category of
verb tense used to describe completed actions.
A. True
B. False
2 not attempted
True or false? The perfect tense is sometimes
called the complete tense.
A. True
B. False
3 not attempted
Select the verb in a perfect tense:
A. paints
B. have painted
C. did paint
4 not attempted
Select the verb in a perfect tense:
A. will have sung
B. sang
C. singing
5 not attempted
Select the verb in a perfect tense:
A. will be playing
B. will have played
C. will play
6 not attempted
Select the verb in a perfect tense:
A. were thinking
B. will have thought
C. thought
7 not attempted
Select the verb in a perfect tense:
A. was typing
B. were typing
C. had typed
8 not attempted
Select the verb in a perfect tense:
A. disliked
B. loathed
C. had hated
9 not attempted
Select the verb in a perfect tense:
A. will have fought
B. fought
C. fighting
10 not attempted
Select the verb in a perfect tense:
A. will have watched
B. were watching
C. will be watching
11 not attempted
Select the verb in a perfect tense:
A. will create
B. had created
C. creating
12 not attempted
Select the second verb in a perfect tense:
I have taken more out of alcohol than
alcohol has taken out of me .
13 not attempted
Select the sentence that contains a verb in a
perfect tense:
A. I've had way more rejections than I've
had jobs. (Matthew Morrison)
B. I had flops, I had success.
14 not attempted
Select the verb in a perfect tense:
A. will express
B. had expressed
C. expressed
15 not attempted
Select the verb in a perfect tense:
A. sees
B. will see
C. has seen
16 not attempted
Select the sentence that contains a verb in a
perfect tense:
A. I had Barbies, obviously, but I used to
destroy them.
B. When the other girls had given up their
Barbies, I was still playing with mine in
secret.
17 not attempted
Select the second verb in a perfect tense:
I had seen people who had lost
everything and everyone they loved to
