Welcome to 15minutes.today the home of English Shadowing. I'm your host, Gavin and this is InTense Episode 5.
Now in this episode we will be looking at the present perfect tense. Now the present perfect tense is a very important tense, and it deals with things that have not finished. So, it is a point in time, in the past that I started, and it has not completed. So, why this tense is so important, is because when we talk about our lives, we use the present perfect tense, because we were born, and we are still alive. So, it is very, very useful when you talk about your life or you meet someone new and you tell them about yourself. Also of course when you meet someone, and you ask them questions about their life, you will use this tense.
So, how do we recognize the perfect tenses? Well it's fairly simple, when we look at the continuous tenses they have “ing” but when we look at the perfect tenses they usually have the “have or has,” and so with those two indicators, that indicates usually that you are dealing with a perfect tense.
Just be careful, because the verb changes and so you would have “ride for present,” “rode for past” and then for the perfect tense you will use “ridden.” So, “I have ridden a horse.” Now, I use that because I am still alive and in my life, I have ridden a horse. Okay so let's get started!
跟讀練習:
Has Mary brushed her teeth?
Yes, she has brushed her teeth.
Has Mary brushed her teeth?
No, she has not brushed her teeth.
Have you brushed your teeth this morning?
Yes, I have brushed my teeth this morning.
Have you brushed your teeth this morning?
No, I have not brushed my teeth this morning.
Have you had lunch today? Yes, I have had lunch today.
Have you had lunch today? No, I have not had lunch today.
Have you ever eaten a big lunch?
Yes, I have eaten a big lunch. Have you ever eaten a big lunch?
No, I have never eaten a big lunch.
Has the population in Taiwan decreased?
Yes, the population in Taiwan has decreased.
Has the population in Taiwan decreased?
No, the population in Taiwan has not decreased.
Have sea temperatures risen? Yes, sea temperatures have risen.
Have sea temperatures risen? No, sea temperatures have not risen.
Have you worked late recently? Yes, I have worked late recently.
Have you worked late recently? No, I have not worked late recently.
Have you learnt more English? Yes, I have learnt more English.
Have you learnt more English? No, I have not learnt more English.
Have you ever been to Japan? Yes, I have been to Japan.
Have you ever been to Japan? No, I have never been to Japan.
Great guys! Well there you go. My only note would be that on that last question, we never you, well I would say I never use “ever” in an answer. I'm sure we could find an exception, but for the most part it seems to work well if you just keep that in mind.
If somebody asks you, “Have you ever done this?” You never put “ever” in your answer. You just say, “No, I have never. or Yes, I have.” Great, please remember that, because that's a quite a common mistake in Taiwan, so never “ever” in an answer. Great guys! Thanks for listening, catch you next time and have a great day! Bye!