He perdido mi cartera. (I’ve misplaced my pockets.)
This straightforward sentence reveals a lot details about what has occurred.
If I need to let you know about an motion that began lately and remains to be persevering with now, the one approach to convey all this data in a single sentence is by utilizing the current excellent tense.
On this put up, you’ll study every thing in regards to the Spanish current excellent tense, together with tips on how to use it, tips on how to conjugate it and what phrases set off it.
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What Is the Spanish Current Excellent Tense?
The Spanish current excellent tense makes use of a conjugation of the verb haber (to have) plus the previous participle to speak about conditions that occurred prior to now however are nonetheless occurring or affecting the current.
Take the primary sentence of this put up for example:
He perdido mi cartera. (I’ve misplaced my pockets.)
This sentence makes use of the current excellent as a result of though I misplaced my pockets prior to now, that motion remains to be affecting the current (I nonetheless don’t have it).
Methods to Type the Current Excellent Tense in Spanish
The Spanish current excellent is one in all what I name “the straightforward tenses” as a result of it’s utilized in very particular conditions, is kind of straightforward to conjugate and its similarities with English are exceptional.
The essential components for conjugating the current excellent tense in Spanish is:
Haber (in current easy) + previous participle
For instance:
Ella ha comido la manzana. (She has eaten the apple.)
Yo he estudiado por tres horas. (I’ve studied for 3 hours.)
Conjugating Haber in Easy Current Tense
First, we’ll study the conjugations of haber within the easy current tense, then tips on how to conjugate the previous participle.
| Pronoun | Conjugation |
|---|---|
| Yo | He (I’ve) |
| Tú | Has (you will have) |
| Él/Ella/Usted | Ha (he/she has, you will have [formal]) |
| Ellos/Ellas/Ustedes | Han (they’ve, you will have [plural, formal]) |
| Nosotros | Hemos (we’ve got) |
| Vosotros | Habéis (you will have [plural]) |
Conjugating the Previous Participle
Right here’s a fast refresher on tips on how to conjugate the previous participle:
1. Verbs ending in -ar change their ending to -ado
2. Verbs ending in -er and -ir change their ending to -ido
Listed below are some examples of verbs of their previous participle kind:
| Verb | Previous participle |
|---|---|
| Cantar (to sing) |
Cantado (sung) |
| Bailar (to bounce) |
Bailado (danced) |
| Llamar (to name) |
Llamado (known as) |
| Comer (to eat) |
Comido (eaten) |
| Beber (to drink) |
Bebido (drunk) |
| Partir (to interrupt) |
Halfido (damaged) |
Should you haven’t mastered the previous participle but, take a look at our in-depth weblog put up right here:
Necessary Notes In regards to the Current Excellent
There are a few small issues it is best to know in regards to the current excellent tense:
1. By no means separate haber from the previous participle. This is likely one of the fundamental variations between Spanish and English in the case of the current excellent tense. You merely can’t add any phrase to the tense and break it aside.
Nunca he bebido alcohol en mi vida. (I’ve by no means drunk alcohol in my life.)
Ya he desayunado hoy. (I’ve already eaten breakfast at present.)
2. Pronouns at all times go earlier than the current excellent, by no means after:
Ya les he dicho la verdad. (I’ve already advised them the reality.)
Se los he comprado yo. (I’ve purchased them for him.)
When to Use the Current Excellent
There are three fundamental eventualities whenever you’d want to make use of the current excellent tense:
1. One thing has occurred lately and it has penalties or results within the current. (Be aware: that is just about restricted to Spain, as the popular tense for this case in Latin America is the preterite).
Hemos comprado una casa. (We have bought a house.)
2. Something happened or started to happen in the past and continues today (similar to the present perfect continuous in English).
He sido profesor de idiomas desde 2002. (I’ve been a language instructor since 2002.)
3. One thing has occurred a sure variety of instances in your life, or you’re expressing whether or not or not you will have ever finished one thing.
He oído que se ha casado cinco veces ya. (I’ve heard he has been married 5 instances already.)
Current Excellent vs. Current Easy
The largest distinction between the current easy and current excellent tenses is that the current easy talks about actions that occur within the current habitually or routinely, whereas the current excellent is used for accomplished actions that also have an effect on the current.
Have a look at these sentences within the current tense:
Me levanto a las 8 de la mañana. (I stand up at 8 o’clock within the morning.)
Ella aprende español. (She learns/is studying Spanish.)
Now, see how conjugating the identical verbs within the current excellent modifications the that means:
Me he levantado a las 8 de la mañana. (I had gotten up at 8 o’clock within the morning.)
Ella ha aprendido español por tres meses. (She has discovered Spanish for 3 months.)
Phrases That Set off the Current Excellent
There are some phrases and expressions that set off the current excellent tense—that means, whenever you see these phrases, often the current excellent follows.
The present perfect is triggered by these words:
- Nunca (Never) — No hemos visto esa película nunca. (We have never watched that movie.)
- Últimamente (Recently, lately) — Ellos han estado trabajando últimamente. (They have been working lately.)
- …veces (…times) — Ya te lo he dicho tres veces. (I have already told you three times.)
- Hoy (Today) — Hoy he desayunado cereales con leche. (I ate cereal with milk for breakfast today.)
- Esta mañana/tarde/noche (This morning/afternoon/tonight) — He comido mucho esta noche. (I have eaten a lot tonight.)
- Esta semana/mes/año (This week, this month, this year) — Esta semana no he podido trabajar. (I have not been able to work this week.)
- Ya (Already) — Ya hemos llegado a casa. (We have already arrived home.)
- Aún (Yet) — No he decidido qué hacer aún. (I have not decided what to do yet.)
- Todavía (Still) — No hemos pagado las facturas todavía. (We have still not paid the bills yet.)
- En mi vida (In my life) — En mi vida he hablado con él. (I have never talked to him in my life.
Practicing the Present Perfect Tense
1. Immerse Yourself in Spanish Media
Supplementing daily practice and language exchanges with immersion is a surefire way to make conjugating the present perfect more second nature.
Language learning programs like FluentU let you watch authentic Spanish videos with interactive subtitles, which makes it easy to spot instances of the present perfect.
Plus, you can click on words and structures you don’t know to get instant definitions, pronunciations, examples and more videos that use it in context.
2. Talk with a Language Partner
If you want the present perfect tense to become second nature, you’ll need to practice using it and hear how it’s used.
One of the best ways to do this is to talk with a native speaker who can use it for you in real life plus help you master it in conversations.
Thanks to technology, it’s easy to start talking with a language partner by downloading free language exchange apps.
3. Take Quizzes and Practice with Exercises
There’s an abundance of free online practice drills for Spanish grammar points.
By simply Googling “present perfect spanish quiz,” you’ll find several exercises like this quiz from StudySpanish.com, which requires you to conjugate haber and the previous participle of verbs they provide you.
The current excellent is a simple tense that we use day-after-day in plenty of contexts and conditions.
Add it to your Spanish lore and make your mates go “woah!” along with your implausible use of it!
Obtain:
This weblog put up is out there as a handy and moveable PDF that you simply
can take anyplace.
Click on right here to get a duplicate. (Obtain)
