Present Perfect (el presente perfecto)
Form
To form the present perfect conjugate haber in the present tense + past participle.
| haber | hablar | comer | vivir | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | he | hablado | comido | vivido |
| tú | has | |||
| él/ella/Ud. | ha | |||
| nosotros/as | hemos | |||
| vosotros/as | habéis | |||
| ellos/ellas/Uds. | han |
Irregular Past Participles
| Infinitive | Irregular Past Participles |
|---|---|
| decir | dicho |
| escribir | escrito |
| hacer | hecho |
| poner | puesto |
| romper | roto |
| ver | visto |
| abrir | abierto |
| volver | vuelto |
| freír | frito |
| morir | muerto |
| resolver | resuelto |
| cubrir | cubierto |
Remember that any verbs ending in one of these verbs will have the same irregularities; for example, componer – compuesto, devolver – devuelto, deshacer – deshecho, etc.
Uses of the Present Perfect
The use of the present perfect in Spanish is similar to its use in English. It is used to indicate that an action or event took place in the past but is relevant or continues in the present. It is common to see this structure in the “Have you…?” type questions.
- Ejemplo(s):
- ¿Has visto la nueva película de Javier Bardém?
- Have you seen Javier Bardem’s new movie?
- No, todavía no la he visto.
- No, I haven’t seen it yet.
- ¿Han viajado Uds. a España una vez?
- Have you ever traveled to Spain?
- No, no hemos viajado fuera de los EE.UU.
- No, we’ve never traveled outside of the U.S.
- Sam ha leído todo el capítulo pero no entiende el material.
- Sam has read the whole chapter but he doesn’t understand the material.
- ¿Ha ido a ver a su instructora durante sus horas de oficina?
- Has he gone to see his instructor during her office hours?
In Acceso Hub: Forma y Función (LingroLearning) you will find input and output activities to practice this structure.