Book4ClassSetAW07-2 5/25/2014 11:17 AM ©Roland Trego - 155 -

UNIT 18: DESCRIBING THE CURRENT SITUATION,

PROGRESS, OR CHANGE

CURRENT SITUATION When we use the present perfect this way, we are focusing on a present state or situation without giving

much thought to the past. In fact, we can often rephrase such sentences in present tense without changing

the meaning much. In our minds we often see a still (静止的, inmóvil, неподвижный ) picture rather than

an action.

1. The bus has arrived. You may board now. (Similar to: The bus is here.)

(In our minds, we see the bus parked in its space, not moving. We don’t see the bus pulling in.)

2. She has finished her dinner. You can take her plate away. (Similar: She is finished with her dinner.)

(We see an empty plate on the table in front of her. We don’t see her eating the last few bits of food.)

3. She has done the dishes. All she has left to do is sweep the floor. (Similar to: The

dishes are done.) (We picture the dishes drying in the dish rack next to the sink.

We don’t see her busy doing the dishes.)

4. Mom, I’ve cleaned my room. Can I go play basketball now? (Similar to: My room

is clean.) (In our minds, we see a room in which everything is neat and in its

proper place. We don’t see someone busy picking things up and putting them away.)

5. The lawn has grown a lot. We’d better mow it. (Similar to: The grass is long.)

(In our minds, we see long grass. We don’t see grass growing.)

6. a. So, how are they getting along?

b. Actually, they’ve stopped talking to each other. (Similar to: They’re aren’t talking to each other.)

CHANGE AND PROGRESS

We can also use the present perfect to talk about what has changed or how much we have done or

accomplished (成就, logros, достигать, достижение).

7. a. Are there any changes to my calendar for tomorrow?

b. As a matter of fact, yes. I’ve moved Jane Brown from 1:30 to 3:30. She called and said that she

was worried that her flight might not arrive on time and she would miss the meeting.

a. Crumb!* I was hoping to leave the office early tomorrow afternoon. Oh, well. *indicates mild disapproval, disappointment, or irritation, similar to “Darn!”

8. a. How’s the project coming along? (前进, avanzar, продвигаться)

b. Well, I’m happy to report that things are moving along according to schedule. We’ve finished the

preliminary designs and (we’ve) sent them to the Planning Department for approval. Also, I’ve

arranged a meeting with the Engineering Department to review the building specifications*.

*the exact details of a plan in writing

Book4ClassSetAW07-2 5/25/2014 11:17 AM ©Roland Trego - 156 -

Exercise. Practice using the present perfect. Describe the situation in the following pictures. Use the

following verbs. (You will use several of them more than once.)

arrive leave run out of lose go pick up

spend finish gain lose lift (or: burn off) land

a. The bus has arrived .

1. She _______________

_____________ weight.

2. He _________________

_______ all of his money.

3. The fog ______________

____________________.

4. He __________________

_______________ gas.

5. The tree ______________

its leaves.

6. The garbage collector

__________________

the garbage.

7. The students __________

____________ the

classroom.

8. He _________________

bald. (Use go.) 开始秃顶 , quedarse calvo

9. The plane ____________

____________________.

10. He __________________

his briefcase.

11. The student on the left

___________________

his test.