Tense and Perfect Aspect Verbs are like bridges: they span the past, present, and future and take you there.
Tense refers to time. Aspect indicates other information about the action or state of the verb: duration, repetition, completion, or quality of the action - but not time. Timeless forms (base form, present participle, and past participle) combine with time-included auxiliary verbs to indicate aspects of verbs. A verb phrase is, therefore, always a TIME-INCLUDED FORM + TIMELESS FORM.
PERFECT ASPECT means that the main verb is inflected (-ed) to indicate repetition or completion of the action or state expressed by the verb. A perfect verb tense is formed with a time-included form of the auxiliary verb HAVE and the PAST PARTICIPLE of the main verb, a timeless form.
Tense
Example Sentence
Explanation
Present Perfect
(1) Rita has flown to Europe and back several times.
The verb shows repeated action over time up to the present. (several times)
(2) Rita has just returned from Germany.
The verb shows completed action in the immediate past. (just)
(3) Her son has lived in Germany for most of his adult life. In fact, he has been there since 1964.
The verb shows a situation that began in the past and continues now. For + a duration of time; Since + a specific past time
(4) Her son has raised his family there.
The verb shows action that was completed at a nonspecific time before now--indefinite past time that's already over.
Past Perfect
(1) The plane had made many round trips to Europe before it crashed.
The verb indicates repeated actions that occurred before another past event. (Past perfect signals an earlier past time).
(2) Richard had bought a ticket for the ill-fated flight, but changed his plans at the last minute.
Two actions occurred in the past. The past perfect indicates which action was completed earlier.
Future Perfect
(1) By next year, two of Richard's children will have left Germany to pursue their lives in The United States and Australia.
The future perfect indicates an action or state that will be completed or realized before or by a later future time.
Verbs can have both progressive and perfect aspect. Note the examples below.
(1) Richard has been living in Germany since 1964.
(2) He had been studying Russian and German before the U.S. army sent him there.
(3) By the time he and his wife retire, all three of his children will have left Germany and resettled elsewhere.
Tense and Perfect Aspect