LONGMAN COMPLETE COURSE FOR THE TOEFL TEST SKILL 34: USE HAVE AND HAD CORRECTLY

LONGMAN COMPLETE COURSE FOR THE TOEFL TEST

STRUCTURE AND WRITTEN EXPRESSION

SKILL 34: USE HAVE AND HAD CORRECTLY

Two tenses that are often confused are the present perfect (have + past participle) and the past perfect (had + past participle). These two tenses have completely different uses, and you should understand how to differentiate them.

The present perfect tense refers to the period of time from the past until the present. The past perfect refers to a period of time that started in the past and ended in the past, before something else happened in the past.

Present perfect tense	Past perfect tense
Sue has lived in Los Angeles for ten years (Sue has lived in Los Angeles for the ten years up to now. According to this sentence, Sue is still living in Los Angeles)	Sue had lived in Los Angeles fro ten years when she moved to San Diego (Sue lived in Los Angeles for ten years in the past before she moved to San Diego in the past. She no longer lives in Los Angeles)

The following chart outlines the uses of the present perfect and the past perfect:

 

EXERCISE 34: Each of the following sentences contains had or have. Underline the verbs twice and decide if the meanings are logical. Then indicate if the sentences are correct (C) or incorrect (I).

……………	3	The students have registered for classes before the semester started.
……………	4	When she had purchased the car, she contacted the insurance agent.
……………	5	He said that he had finished the typing when you finish the reports.
……………	6	She has enjoyed herself every time that she has gone to the zoo.
……………	7	He drove to the post office after he had finished preparing the package.
……………	8	After the votes were counted, it had finished preparing the package.
……………	9	Last night all the waiters and waitresses have worked overtime.
……………	10	He had fastened his seat belt before the airplane took off.

ANSWER KEY

1	C
2	I	(had should be has)
3	I	(have should be had)
4	C
5	I	(finish should be had finished)
6	C
7	C
8	I	(were should be had been, (had been  should be was))
9	I	(have worked should be worked)
10	C