El pretérito perfectoEl pluscuamperfecto

The present perfect (what has happened)The past perfect (what had happened)

In English

• Both English and Spanish form compound tenses with a helping verb followed by the past participle of the main verb. In English, the helping verb is to have. In Spanish the helping verb is haber.

El préterito perfecto

• Use the pretérito perfecto to say what has happened.

• It refers to something that was completed at an indefinite time in the past but that still has an effect on the present, or to something that always has been (and might still be) true.

Por ejemplo

• Nosotros hemos viajado a Uxmal.• We have traveled to Uxmal (at some point

before now)

• Siempre he querido viajar a Cancún, pero hasta la fecha no he podido.

• I have always wanted to travel to Cancún, but so far I have not been able to.

El pluscuamperfecto

• Refers to an action that was completed at an indefinite time before a past moment.

• Cuando nos invitaron a Mérida ya habíamos viajado a Yucatán.

• When they invited us to Merida, we had already traveled to the Yucatan.

To form the pretérito perfecto

• Conjugate the verb haber in the present tense and add the past participle of the main verb

• He hemos• Has habéis + past participle• Ha han

To form the pluscuamperfecto

• Conjugate the verb haber in the imperfect tense and add the past participle of the main verb.

• Había habíamos• Habías habíais + past participle• Había habían