Practice Makes Perfect

The participle of a regular verb looks just like the past tense. It ends in -ed. But the participle of

an irregular verb often makes a change. Look at this list of irregular participles of commonly

used verbs:

Infinitive Participle Infinitive Participle

to be been to make made

to break broken to put put

to bring brought to read read

to build built to ride ridden

to buy bought to run run

to catch caught to see seen

to cut cut to sell sold

to do done to sit sat

to find found to speak spoken

to fly flown to stand stood

to go gone to take taken

to have had to teach taught

to hit hit to throw thrown

to lose lost to write written

The present perfect of an action in progress or incomplete is formed by conjugating to have

(have/has) with the participle of to be(been) and the verb with an -ingending. The structure is to

have been verb-ing:

to work has been working

to carry has been carrying

to speak has been speaking

In this formation there is no need to worry about irregular participles.

Notice how the present perfect tense forms from the present tense:

He learns English. He has learned English

He is learning English. He has been learning English.

We see strangers. We have seen strangers.

We are seeing strangers. We have been seeing strangers.

I ride a long time. I have ridden a long time.

I am riding a long time. I have been riding a long time.

Change the habitual present perfect tense to the present perfect tense of an action in progress or incomplete.

1. Lana has spoken with him.


2. Has he gone to his class?

exercise 5-14

34 Practice Makes Perfect: English Grammar for ESL Learners

02 (017-043) Unit 5 11/3/04 1:41 PM Page 34