Verbs and their tenses are time defining parts of English. English has three broad categories of tenses – Past, Present and Future. Within these we have various sub-categories, such as present, present continuous, present perfect, simple past and past perfect. For each of these tenses there are specific words to be used in a specific way to be grammatically correct. In this High English quiz we look at two of the tenses – present perfect and simple past – in a comparative manner, and try to understand the differences.
One could get confused while using these tenses. The present perfect tense has a form that uses either HAVE/HAS together with the past participle of a VERB, or HAVE/HAS together with BEEN and the past participle of a VERB. Here are two examples:
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‘They have gone to the market.’
‘The accused has been remanded to custody.’
These two sentences show the usage of present perfect tense, with have/has and the appropriate verbs.
The simple past tense uses verbs in their simple past forms. Simple to use, as its name implies! Here are some examples:
‘He passed the Board Exam with distinction.’
‘Sania Mirza lost her semi-final match.’
‘They beat them up in the dark alley.’
These three sentences show the usage of simple past tense with the verbs 'pass-passed', 'lose-lost' and 'beat-beat'.
The main difference between present perfect and simple past forms is the state of the action – whether it is completed or not. For instance, in the sentence ‘he MADE a lot of new enemies’ an action has been completed, whereas in the sentence ‘he HAS MADE a lot of new enemies’ an action may not have been completed although it does not continue. The first sentence, as we know, is in the simple past tense and the second is in the present perfect tense.
In the quiz that follows we will learn more about the differences between the two tense forms.
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1.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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I have been a teacher for five years.
I was a teacher for five years. |
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I have been a teacher for five years.
I am a teacher for five years |
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I have been a teacher for five years.
I had been a teacher for five years |
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I am going to be a teacher for five years.
I was a teacher for five years |
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2.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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Trupti has always got good marks in Science.
Trupti gets good marks in Science. |
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Trupti has always got good marks in Science.
Trupti had got good marks in Science. |
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Trupti is getting good marks in Science.
Trupti always got good marks in Science. |
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Trupti has always got good marks in Science.
Trupti always got good marks in Science. |
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3.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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Mary has never met her cousin.
Mary never meets her cousin. |
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Mary has never met her cousin.
Mary never met her cousin. |
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Mary has never met her cousin.
Mary had never met her cousin. |
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Mary is never meeting her cousin.
Mary never met her cousin. |
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4.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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I have never visited Canada.
I never visit Canada. |
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I have never visited Canada.
I had never visited Canada. |
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I have never visited Canada.
I never visited Canada. |
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I am never visiting Canada.
I never visited Canada. |
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5.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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Julian has completed five assignments today.
Julian completes five assignments today. |
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Julian has completed five assignments today.
Julian had completed five assignments today. |
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Julian is completing five assignments today.
Julian completed five assignments today. |
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Julian has completed five assignments today.
Julian completed five assignments today. |
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6.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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I have not attended school today.
I did not attend school today |
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I have not attended school today.
I do not attend school today |
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I have not attended school today.
I had not attended school today |
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I am not attending school today.
I did not attend school today |
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7.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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Have you shown me your homework?
Do you show me your homework? |
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Have you shown me your homework?
Had you shown me your homework? |
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Have you shown me your homework?
Did you show me your homework? |
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Are you showing me your homework?
Did you show me your homework? |
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8.
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Choose the sentence with the correct tense. |
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They have eaten Chinese food last night. |
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They ate Chinese food last night. |
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They eated Chinese food last night. |
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They eat Chinese food last night. |
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9.
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Choose the sentence with the correct tense. |
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I have lived in Hyderabad in 1989. |
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I have live in Hyderabad. |
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I living in Hyderabad. |
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I have lived in Hyderabad. |
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10.
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Choose the sentence with the correct tense. |
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James has crashed his car again. |
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James has crashed his car again last year. |
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James has crash his car again. |
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James has crashing his car again. |
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1.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
|
[x] |
I have been a teacher for five years.
I was a teacher for five years. |
[ ] |
I have been a teacher for five years.
I am a teacher for five years |
[ ] |
I have been a teacher for five years.
I had been a teacher for five years |
[ ] |
I am going to be a teacher for five years.
I was a teacher for five years |
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2.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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[ ] |
Trupti has always got good marks in Science.
Trupti gets good marks in Science. |
[ ] |
Trupti has always got good marks in Science.
Trupti had got good marks in Science. |
[ ] |
Trupti is getting good marks in Science.
Trupti always got good marks in Science. |
[x] |
Trupti has always got good marks in Science.
Trupti always got good marks in Science. |
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3.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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[ ] |
Mary has never met her cousin.
Mary never meets her cousin. |
[x] |
Mary has never met her cousin.
Mary never met her cousin. |
[ ] |
Mary has never met her cousin.
Mary had never met her cousin. |
[ ] |
Mary is never meeting her cousin.
Mary never met her cousin. |
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4.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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[ ] |
I have never visited Canada.
I never visit Canada. |
[ ] |
I have never visited Canada.
I had never visited Canada. |
[x] |
I have never visited Canada.
I never visited Canada. |
[ ] |
I am never visiting Canada.
I never visited Canada. |
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5.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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[ ] |
Julian has completed five assignments today.
Julian completes five assignments today. |
[ ] |
Julian has completed five assignments today.
Julian had completed five assignments today. |
[ ] |
Julian is completing five assignments today.
Julian completed five assignments today. |
[x] |
Julian has completed five assignments today.
Julian completed five assignments today. |
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6.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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[x] |
I have not attended school today.
I did not attend school today |
[ ] |
I have not attended school today.
I do not attend school today |
[ ] |
I have not attended school today.
I had not attended school today |
[ ] |
I am not attending school today.
I did not attend school today |
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7.
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Choose the pair of sentences that express the present perfect and the simple past forms. |
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[ ] |
Have you shown me your homework?
Do you show me your homework? |
[ ] |
Have you shown me your homework?
Had you shown me your homework? |
[x] |
Have you shown me your homework?
Did you show me your homework? |
[ ] |
Are you showing me your homework?
Did you show me your homework? |
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8.
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Choose the sentence with the correct tense. |
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[ ] |
They have eaten Chinese food last night. |
[x] |
They ate Chinese food last night. |
[ ] |
They eated Chinese food last night. |
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They eat Chinese food last night. |
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9.
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Choose the sentence with the correct tense. |
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[ ] |
I have lived in Hyderabad in 1989. |
[ ] |
I have live in Hyderabad. |
[ ] |
I living in Hyderabad. |
[x] |
I have lived in Hyderabad. |
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10.
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Choose the sentence with the correct tense. |
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[x] |
James has crashed his car again. |
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James has crashed his car again last year. |
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James has crash his car again. |
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James has crashing his car again. |
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