Lesson 8 – Step 3 – Deeper into the Present perfect

PROGRESO DE LA LECCIÓN

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Goal

It’s time to learn about some new aspects of the present perfect tense.

You can watch the video or go straight to the written explanation. You decide! Once you’ve finished, you can move to step 4.

Language Discovery

Look at the words in blue in the text in step 1. What do they have in common?

They use the present perfect
They describe a finished action in the past

Look at the words in green in the text in step 1. What do they have in common?

They use the present perfect
They describe an action that is not finished.

Present Perfect – for and since

We use the present perfect with for and since to describe actions that started in the past and are still true now.

	Use for + a period of time
I have lived in this house	for two years for a week for three hours
	Use since + a moment in time
I have lived in this house	since last month since Tuesday since 2004

Present Perfect – just ,already and yet

We use the present perfect with the words just, already and yet to describe actions that finished in the past but have a significance in the present.

yet	use yet in negative sentences and questions. Yet implies there is still time to complete the task. It’s similar to Spanish “ya” and “todavía” Use yet at the end of a sentence	Have you cleaned your room *yet? I haven’t done it* *yet*.	Ya has limpiado tu habitación? No la he limpiado *todavía*.
already	Use already in affirmative sentences. Already implies that the action was finished sooner than expected. It’s similar to Spanish “ya”. Use already before the main verb.	I have *already* cleaned my room.	Ya he limpiado mi cuarto
just	Use just in affirmative sentences and questions. Just implies that the action was completed very recently. It’s similar to Spanish “recién”. Use just before the main verb	I’ve *just* cleaned my room.	*Recién* he limpiado mi cuarto.

Now let’s see some examples from Step 1:

Finished action	Unfinished action
He says he has *just* left the house. It happened a short time ago	Nobody has cleaned here *for* two weeks. It is still true now
He has *already* taken the rubbish out. He did it earlier	It has been dirty *since* 1995. It started in 1995 and it is still true now
He hasn’t had the time to do anything else *yet*. He will probably do it later

Conclusion

Ready? Terrific! Let’s move on to step 4 to practise what you’ve learnt in this step.