español · A2 · grammar · 4 minutes
Present perfect: all six persons
Match every subject with the right form of haber, then add the past participle.
Understand the choice
Build the present perfect with the present tense of haber plus a past participle: yo he, tú has, él/ella/usted ha, nosotros/nosotras hemos, vosotros/vosotras habéis, and ellos/ellas/ustedes han. Use it for a completed action connected with now or with an open period such as hoy or esta semana. The auxiliary identifies the person; the participle stays unchanged.
Core rule: The present perfect uses he, has, ha, hemos, habéis, or han + an unchanged past participle; first-person plural is hemos + past participle.
Notice it in context
Nosotros hemos comido.
We have eaten.
Nosotros and nosotras use hemos; comido is the unchanged past participle of comer.
Yo he visitado París.
I have visited Paris.
Yo uses he. The regular -ar participle visitado does not change for the speaker.
Tú has terminado la tarea.
You have finished the homework.
Tú uses has when addressing one familiar person.
Ella ha trabajado aquí.
She has worked here.
Él, ella, and the formal singular usted all use ha.
Vosotras habéis llegado temprano.
You all have arrived early.
Vosotros and vosotras use habéis in Spain; ustedes takes han.
Ellos han visto la película.
They have seen the movie.
Ellos, ellas, and ustedes use han; visto is the irregular participle of ver.
What to remember
- Learn the auxiliary sequence as a set: he, has, ha, hemos, habéis, han.
- Regular -ar verbs form the participle in -ado; regular -er and -ir verbs use -ido.
- The participle stays unchanged after haber: he comido, hemos comido, and han comido.
Common trap: Do not use tener, somos, or habemos as the auxiliary, and do not make the participle agree with the subject. Say hemos comido and ellas han comido, never somos comidos or han comidas.