Learn the pretérito perfecto de indicativo to express recent actions (he comentado), life experiences (has usado), and events with present relevance (han afectado). This lesson covers its morphology and key uses for everyday conversations.
  1. The present perfect indicative is used to talk about past actions that have a connection with the present.
  2. It is formed with the present of the verb haber and the past participle of the main verb.

 

UsoEjemplo
Acciones recientesHoy he comentado varias publicaciones en las redes sociales. (Today I have commented on several posts on social media.)
Experiencias de vidaHas usado varias aplicaciones públicas para seguir las tendencias. (You have used several public applications to follow trends.)
Acciones en períodos de tiempo no concluidosEste mes hemos hablado mucho sobre la privacidad en internet. (This month we have spoken a lot about privacy on the internet.)
Hechos con relevancia en el presenteLos comentarios de los usuarios han afectado mucho a los influencers. (User comments have affected influencers a lot.)

Exercise 1: Pretérito perfecto de indicativo: morfología y usos

Instruction: Fill in the correct word.

Show translation Show answers

han afectado, ha comentado, han comentado, hemos subido, habéis afectado, he subido, he comentado, ha afectado

1. Comentar:
Hoy yo ... varias publicaciones en las redes sociales.
(Today I have commented on several posts on social media.)
2. Comentar:
Ana nunca ... las publicaciones de Juan.
(Ana has never commented on Juan's posts.)
3. Comentar:
Los seguidores más activo de la página ... cada publicación de la semana.
(The most active followers of the page have commented on every post of the week.)
4. Afectar:
El usuario ... la visibilidad de la publicación con sus comentarios negativos.
(The user has affected the visibility of the post with their negative comments.)
5. Afectar:
Los comentarios negativos ... la reputación de la publicación más reciente.
(Negative comments have affected the reputation of the most recent publication.)
6. Afectar:
Vosotros ... la opinión de muchos seguidores.
(You have influenced the opinion of many followers.)
7. Subir:
Hoy yo ... una publicación sobre la privacidad en las redes sociales.
(Today I have posted about privacy on social networks.)
8. Subir:
Esta semana nosotros ... una publicación en la aplicación para hablar sobre los riesgos de la privacidad en línea.
(This week we have posted a publication on the app to talk about the risks of online privacy.)

Pretérito perfecto de indicativo: Morphology and Uses

This lesson covers the pretérito perfecto de indicativo, a fundamental past tense in Spanish used to describe actions that connect past events with the present. Understanding this tense is essential for expressing recent experiences, ongoing relevance of past actions, and life experiences.

Formation of the Tense

The pretérito perfecto is formed by combining the present tense of the auxiliary verb haber with the past participle of the main verb. For example, the verb comentar (to comment) is used as follows: he comentado (I have commented).

Principal Uses

  • Recent Actions: Actions completed recently that remain relevant. Example: Hoy he comentado varias publicaciones en las redes sociales.
  • Life Experiences: Speaking about experiences a person has had. Example: Has usado varias aplicaciones públicas para seguir las tendencias.
  • Actions in Unfinished Time Periods: Actions that happened during a period that has not yet finished. Example: Este mes hemos hablado mucho sobre la privacidad en internet.
  • Past Events Relevant to the Present: Events whose effects continue to influence the present. Example: Los comentarios de los usuarios han afectado mucho a los influencers.

Important Vocabulary and Expressions

  • Hoy – today
  • Varias publicaciones – several posts
  • Redes sociales – social networks
  • Aplicaciones públicas – public applications (apps)
  • Este mes – this month
  • Privacidad – privacy
  • Comentarios – comments
  • Influencers – influencers

Notes on Differences between English and Spanish

In English, the present perfect is often used to indicate actions with relevance to the present, similar to Spanish. However, Spanish frequently uses the pretérito perfecto to describe recent actions where English might use the simple past, depending on context.

Useful phrases include: he hablado (I have spoken), has usado (you have used), hemos comentado (we have commented), which correspond to English present perfect forms.

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