234 Part IV: The Grammar You Need to Know – and How to Teach It
Quite often we use ‘ever’ with present perfect questions of this kind and
‘never’ in an answer.
Have you ever studied French? No, I’ve never studied it.
Continuing from the past until the present
Sometimes an action started in the past but is still true now. In these situa-
tions we can express the duration of time using the word for followed by a
period of time or the word since plus a date or a point in time:
I have lived here for three and a half years now, since July 2005.
This tense can also describe something that is gradual:
Joshua has grown as tall as his dad.
Typical words associated with this gradual use of the tense include: today,
tonight, this week/month/year, so far, in the last minutes/days/week and so on.
Anticipating expectations
When we ask about things we’re expecting, we use the present perfect simple
with ‘yet’. The answer may include ‘already’, ‘recently’ or perhaps ‘still’,
although you use ‘yet’ in negative sentences(those which include not).
Is he here yet?
Yes, he has already arrived, or No, he still hasn’t arrived.
Noting recent changes
Very often we can see the result of a recent action because of a visible
change. We often use ‘just’ and ‘recently’ in these sentences but it’s impor-
tant to point out when to put these words in a sentence:
Have you had a fall recently? Your arm is all bruised.
I’m blushing again. Jason has just walked in.
