Present perfect: have you ever…?
Talk about life experiences with the present perfect: Have you ever…? I’ve never…
In this lesson you will
- Form the present perfect with have/has + past participle
- Ask and answer Have you ever…?
- Use ever, never and before
Learn
Form: have / has + past participle: I’ve (I have) been to Japan. She’s (she has) eaten sushi. We haven’t seen that film.
Regular participles = past form (visited, played). Irregular ones must be learned: be → been, see → seen, eat → eaten, do → done, go → gone/been, write → written, meet → met, try → tried.
Use it for experiences in your life when the time isn’t important or isn’t said: I’ve climbed a mountain. (When? Not important.)
Questions: Have you ever…? (at any time in your life). Answers: Yes, I have. / No, I haven’t. I’ve never… = not at any time.
| Base | Past | Past participle |
|---|---|---|
| be | was/were | been |
| see | saw | seen |
| eat | ate | eaten |
| do | did | done |
| write | wrote | written |
| fly | flew | flown |
Examples
- Have you ever been to Brazil? — Yes, I have.
- I’ve never eaten octopus.
- She’s met a famous actor.
- We haven’t tried the new café yet.
Vocabulary
ever
at any time
“Have you ever…?”
never
not at any time
experience
something that has happened to you
been to
visited and come back
“I’ve been to Rome.”
try
do or taste something to see if you like it
Practice
Complete the sentence.
Speaking
Ask and answer six “Have you ever…?” questions (e.g. eaten something strange, met someone famous, lost your phone). Add one detail to each answer.
Writing
Write about five interesting experiences you’ve had and three things you’ve never done but would like to do.
Lesson quiz
He ___ been to Australia.
Review
Key points
- have/has + past participle.
- Experiences, time not stated.
- Have you ever…? I’ve never…
What you learned
- ✓ I can form the present perfect.
- ✓ I can ask about experiences.
- ✓ I know common past participles.
Grammar reference: Present perfect