El pretérito perfecto is similar to the present perfect in English. Conjugating verbs in this tense can be simple, but you need to learn a few rules first.
Spanish
English
He estudiado español por 3 años.
I have studied Spanish for 3 years.
Using the Pretérito Perfecto
Rule 1. The pretérito perfecto tense is only used to express an action that took place in the past but still applies or is connected to the present.
Spanish
English
He trabajado en esta compañía por 10 años.
I have worked in this company for 10 years.
Forming the Pretérito Perfecto
Rule 2. An important characteristic of compound tenses is that they require the auxiliary verb haber. Pretérito perfecto requires the verb haber in the present tense.
| Subject Pronoun | Haber |
|---|---|
| yo | he |
| tú | has |
| él, ella, usted | ha |
| nosotros, nosotras | hemos |
| vosotros, vosotras | habéis |
| ellos, ellas, ustedes | han |
| Subject Pronoun | Haber |
|---|---|
| yo | he |
| tú | has |
| él, ella, usted | ha |
| nosotros, nosotras | hemos |
| vosotros, vosotras | habéis |
| ellos, ellas, ustedes | han |
Rule 3. To form the present perfect tense, you need to add a verb in past participle to the auxiliary verb. Past participle verbs are those ending in -ado (verbs ending in -ar) or -ido (verbs ending in -er, -ir).
Spanish
English
He manejado durante cinco días, ya no puedo más.
I've been driving for five days, I can't take it anymore.
Regular Verbs in Past Participle
Rule 4. Regular verbs are those that don't undergo changes when put into the past participle form.
| Verb in Infinitive Form | Stem | Past Participle Form |
|---|---|---|
| Hablar | Habl | Hablado |
| Comer | Com | Comido |
| Vivir | Viv | Vivido |
| Verb in Infinitive Form | Stem | Past Participle Form |
|---|---|---|
| Hablar | Habl | Hablado |
| Comer | Com | Comido |
| Vivir | Viv | Vivido |
Irregular Verbs in Past Participle
Rule 5. On the other hand, irregular verbs change their stem when conjugated. A good example is the verb escribir.
| Infinitive Form | Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|---|
| escribir | escribido | escrito |
| Infinitive Form | Incorrect | Correct |
|---|---|---|
| escribir | escribido | escrito |
As you can see, simply adding the past participle suffix is not correct because this verb has a change in its stem, which makes it irregular.
Other irregular verbs are:
| Infinitive Form | Irregular Form |
|---|---|
| abrir | abierto |
| decir | dicho |
| freir | frito |
| hacer | hecho |
| morir | muerto |
| imprimir | impreso |
| poner | puesto |
| ver | visto |
| volver | vuelto |
| Infinitive Form | Irregular Form |
|---|---|
| abrir | abierto |
| decir | dicho |
| freir | frito |
| hacer | hecho |
| morir | muerto |
| imprimir | impreso |
| poner | puesto |
| ver | visto |
| volver | vuelto |
Quiz
1/3
Alicia y Roberto ____________ salido por 4 meses.
0
correct answers.