perfect tense
The 'perfect tense' is a grammatical construction used to describe actions or states that have been completed at various points in time.
🇺🇸 US Voice:
🇬🇧 UK Voice:
Definition
B2General Grammar
(academic)A verb form used to indicate that an action or state has been completed at some point in the past, present, or future.
Example
- She has finished her homework.
- They had left before we arrived.
- By next week, he will have completed the project.
B2Present Perfect
(academic)Describes actions that began in the past and continue to the present or have relevance to the present.
Example
- I have lived here for five years.
- She has just arrived.
B2Past Perfect
(academic)Describes actions completed before another action in the past.
Example
- They had eaten by the time I arrived.
- He had finished the book before the deadline.
B2Future Perfect
(academic)Describes actions that will be completed by a specific time in the future.
Example
- She will have graduated by next year.
- By the time you arrive, I will have finished cooking.
Similar
Terms that have similar or relatively close meanings to "perfect tense":