Perfect tense Practice exercises
The Perfect tense describes what has happened or what someone has done, e.g. I have lost my passport.
It is formed using the present tense of "haber" plus a past participle.
In Spanish, past participles end in -ado (for AR verbs) and -ido (ER/IR verbs). Be aware: there are a few irregular past participles!
| Example of AR verb | Example of ER/IR verb | ||
| he visitado | I have visited | he perdido | I have lost |
| has visitado | you have visited | has perdido | you have lost |
| ha visitado | he/she/it has visited | ha perdido | he/she/it has lost |
| hemos visitado | we have visited | hemos perdido | we have lost |
| habéis visitado | you (all) have visited | habéis perdido | you (all) have lost |
| han visitado | they have visited | han perdido | they have lost |
Notes
The verb "haber" and the past participle can never be split up. This means that negatives and pronouns go in front of "haber", e.g. nunca he visitado España - I have never visited Spain; lo he perdido - I have lost it.
The past participle is invariable in the perfect tense, e.g. las chicas han comido las manzanas - the girls have eaten the apples.
The following are not translated using the perfect tense: I have been studying Spanish for five years, I have just arrived in Madrid.