Present Perfect Tense – English Grammar Exercises for A2
You are in a team meeting to update your project leader on the presentation. Read the sentences carefully and choose the best option (a, b, c, or d) to complete the status update.
1 “Don’t worry about the introduction slides. I ______ my part of the presentation.”
(a) already finish
(b) already finished
(c) has already finished
(d) have already finished
2 “We need to combine the files now. ______ your summary yet?”
(a) Have you written
(b) Do you write
(c) Did you write
(d) You have written
3 “Chloe is very fast. She ______ all the pictures we need for the slides.”
(a) have already found
(b) has already found
(c) is already finding
(d) already found
4 “We can’t submit the project now because Dan ______ his research yet.”
(a) hasn’t done
(b) haven’t done
(c) didn’t do
(d) doesn’t do
5 “I ______ this document three times, and it looks perfect.”
(a) am checking
(b) have check
(c) have checked
(d) checked
6 “Ben, how long ______ on the financial report?”
(a) did you work
(b) have you work
(c) have you worked
(d) do you work
7 “I am sorry, but I haven’t finished the graphs ______. I need one more hour.”
(a) still
(b) yet
(c) just
(d) already
8 “We have worked on this marketing project ______ last Monday.”
(a) for
(b) until
(c) since
(d) from
9 “Great news! The client ______ our proposal, so we can start building the presentation.”
(a) has just approve
(b) just approved
(c) is just approving
(d) has just approved
10 “I know we are in a hurry, but I haven’t heard from the designer ______ three days.”
(a) for
(b) since
(c) during
(d) in
11 “You don’t need to send me the data. I ______ it from the company folder.”
(a) already download
(b) have already downloaded
(c) already downloaded
(d) have already download
12 “______ to the manager about our delay?” – “Yes, I told her this morning.”
(a) Did you speak
(b) Have you speaked
(c) Do you speak
(d) Have you spoken
13 “Everything is on track. We ______ any major problems so far.”
(a) hasn’t had
(b) didn’t have
(c) haven’t had
(d) don’t have
14 “Dan ______ a team meeting before, so please help him prepare the agenda.”
(a) never organized
(b) hasn’t never organized
(c) has never organized
(d) is never organizing
15 “I am ready to combine the slides. Who ______ their presentation file to the shared drive?”
(a) already uploaded
(b) is already uploading
(c) has already uploaded
(d) have already uploaded
16 “We are doing well, but we haven’t practiced our speech ______.”
(a) yet
(b) still
(c) already
(d) just
17 “Look! The marketing team ______ us the final logo design. I can add it to our title slide now.”
(a) just sent
(b) has just sent
(c) have just sended
(d) just sends
18 “This is a complex assignment. We ______ on it ______ more than a month.”
(a) worked / since
(b) work / for
(c) have worked / since
(d) have worked / for
19 “I ______ the email to the client, but they ______ back to me yet.”
(a) have already sent / hasn’t replied
(b) have already sent / haven’t replied
(c) already send / don’t reply
(d) already sent / didn’t reply
20 “I’m not surprised that the system is slow today. We ______ the software ______ 2021”
(a) haven’t updated / for
(b) didn’t update / for
(c) haven’t updated / since
(d) haven’t update / since
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 Key: (d) have already finished
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: Present Perfect (have + V3) with “already” shows an action is completed earlier than expected, with the result being “the slides are ready now”.
- Distractor Analysis: (b) is a Common Mistake (using Past Simple, which disconnects the action from the present status). (c) is a Structural Error (“has” is wrong for “I”). (a) is a Meaning/Structural Trap (Present Simple means a routine, not a completed task).
2 Key: (a) Have you written
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: Asking about the current status of a task using “yet” requires the Present Perfect.
- Distractor Analysis: (c) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple is often misused with “yet” by learners). (d) is a Structural Error (statement word order instead of question). (b) is a Meaning Trap (asks about a general habit of writing).
3 Key: (b) has already found
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: “She” takes “has”. The action is completed, and we have the pictures now.
- Distractor Analysis: (d) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple). (a) is a Structural Error (“have” is incorrect for “She”). (c) is a Meaning Trap (Present Continuous means she is still looking, but the context says she is fast and the pictures are ready).
4 Key: (a) hasn’t done
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: Negative Present Perfect with “yet” shows an expected task is incomplete. “Dan” takes “hasn’t”.
- Distractor Analysis: (c) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple). (b) is a Structural Error (“haven’t” is wrong for “Dan”). (d) is a Meaning Trap (Present Simple implies he routinely doesn’t do it).
5 Key: (c) have checked
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: Present Perfect is used to count how many times an action has happened up to the present (“three times”).
- Distractor Analysis: (d) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple focuses only on the past, losing the connection to the present result “it looks perfect”). (b) is a Structural Error (missing the V3 “ed”). (a) is a Meaning Trap (implies ongoing action right now).
6 Key: (c) have you worked
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: “How long” + Present Perfect asks about the duration of a task from the past up to the meeting.
- Distractor Analysis: (a) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple implies the work is completely finished and in the past). (b) is a Structural Error (missing V3 “ed”). (d) is a Meaning Trap (asks about a general fact/routine).
7 Key: (b) yet
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: “Yet” goes at the end of a negative sentence to show a task is not finished up to the moment of speaking.
- Distractor Analysis: (d) is a Common Mistake (“already” is used in positive sentences). (a) is a Structural Error (“still” goes before the auxiliary verb, e.g., “I still haven’t”). (c) is a Meaning Trap (“just” means a very short time ago, incorrect in negative here).
8 Key: (c) since
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: “Last Monday” is a specific starting point in time, requiring “since”.
- Distractor Analysis: (a) is a Common Mistake (confusing “for” with “since”). (d) is a Structural Error (wrong preposition for Present Perfect time markers). (b) is a Meaning Trap (“until” means the action stopped then).
9 Key: (d) has just approved
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: “Has just” + V3 shows a very recently completed action that affects the current situation (we can start building).
- Distractor Analysis: (b) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple with “just”). (a) is a Structural Error (missing V3 “d”). (c) is a Meaning Trap (Present Continuous means it’s happening at this exact second, not completed yet).
10 Key: (a) for
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: “Three days” is a duration (length of time), which requires “for”.
- Distractor Analysis: (b) is a Common Mistake (using “since” with a duration). (c) is a Meaning Trap (“in” is sometimes used colloquially, but “for” is the strict CEFR rule). (d) is a Structural Error (wrong preposition).
11 Key: (b) have already downloaded
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: Shows the task is complete, so there is no need to send the data.
- Distractor Analysis: (c) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple). (d) is a Structural Error (missing V3 “ed”). (a) is a Structural Error (Present Simple with “already” is grammatically invalid here).
12 Key: (d) Have you spoken
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: Asking about an action completed before the meeting. V3 of speak is “spoken”.
- Distractor Analysis: (a) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple is less accurate here because we are asking about the present status of the delay). (b) is a Structural Error (“speaked” is not a word). (c) is a Meaning Trap (asks if you have the ability to speak to her).
13 Key: (c) haven’t had
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: “So far” (up to now) is a strong signal for the Present Perfect.
- Distractor Analysis: (b) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple ignores the “up to now” meaning). (a) is a Structural Error (“hasn’t” is wrong for “We”). (d) is a Meaning Trap (Present Simple is for general facts).
14 Key: (c) has never organized
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: “Never” + V3 describes a lack of experience up to the present moment.
- Distractor Analysis: (a) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple). (b) is a Structural Error (double negative “hasn’t never”). (d) is a Meaning Trap (Present Continuous doesn’t fit the context of past experience).
15 Key: (c) has already uploaded
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: When “Who” is the subject of a question, it is treated as singular (has).
- Distractor Analysis: (a) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple). (d) is a Structural Error (“have” is plural, which is grammatically incorrect after the subject pronoun “Who”). (b) is a Meaning Trap (implies the action is happening right now, but the speaker wants to know whose file is ready).
16 Key: (a) yet
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: “Yet” shows an expected task (practicing the speech) is still uncompleted.
- Distractor Analysis: (c) is a Common Mistake (“already” in a negative sentence). (b) is a Structural Error (“still” belongs before “haven’t”). (d) is a Meaning Trap (“just” cannot be used like this).
17 Key: (b) has just sent
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: “Marketing team” (singular unit) takes “has”. The result is visible right now (“Look!”). V3 of send is “sent”.
- Distractor Analysis: (a) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple). (c) is a Structural Error (“sended” is incorrect). (d) is a Meaning Trap (Present Simple).
18 Key: (d) have worked / for
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: Present Perfect for an ongoing project. “More than a month” is a duration, so it needs “for”.
- Distractor Analysis: (b) is a Meaning Trap (Present Simple). (a) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple and confusing “since”). (c) is a Structural Error (using “since” with a duration).
19 Key: (b) have already sent / haven’t replied
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: First action is complete (have already sent), second action is still pending (haven’t replied).
- Distractor Analysis: (d) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple for both). (a) is a Structural Error (“they” must take “haven’t”, not “hasn’t”). (c) is a Meaning Trap/Structural Error (wrong tenses).
20 Key: (c) haven’t updated / since
Explanation:
- Why it’s correct: Negative Present Perfect to explain the current slow system. “2021” is a specific starting point in time, requiring “since”.
- Distractor Analysis: (b) is a Common Mistake (Past Simple + wrong preposition). (a) is a Structural Error (using “for” with a year). (d) is a Structural Error (missing V3 “d” on updated).
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- The Form: Present Perfect is formed with Have / Has + Past Participle (V3/ed).
- Use has for He/She/It (or singular subjects like “The team”). Use have for I/You/We/They.
- Professional Updates (Already & Yet):
- Already: Used in positive sentences to announce a task is finished (often earlier than expected). It goes between the auxiliary and the main verb. (I have already finished.)
- Yet: Used in questions and negative sentences to check if a task is done or to report a delay. It goes at the end of the sentence. (Have you written it yet? / I haven’t done it yet.)
- Just:
- Used to announce a task that was completed a very short time ago. (The client has just approved.)
- For vs. Since (Reporting Time):
- For + Duration: Use for a length of time. (for three days, for more than a month)
- Since + Starting Point: Use for a specific moment in the past. (since last Monday, since 2021)