Spanish Present Perfect: he hablado and when to use it
Short answer
Haber in the present plus the participle: he, has, ha, hemos, habéis, han + hablado, comido, vivido. In Spain it covers today, this week, ever and never; in much of Latin America the preterite takes its place.
Level A2 · verbs, past
The rule in full
Past actions inside a time frame that still includes now — like English have done.
haber + participle
| haber | participle | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| yo | he | -ar → -ado (hablado) | |
| tú | has | -er/-ir → -ido (comido, vivido) | |
| él/ella | ha | ||
| nosotros | hemos | ||
| vosotros | habéis | ||
| ellos | han |
- Hoy he trabajado mucho.
- ¿Has estado alguna vez en Perú?
Time markers: hoy, esta semana, este año, ya, todavía no, alguna vez, nunca.
Irregular participles
| Verb | Participle | Verb | Participle |
|---|---|---|---|
| abrir | abierto | poner | puesto |
| decir | dicho | romper | roto |
| escribir | escrito | ver | visto |
| hacer | hecho | volver | vuelto |
| morir | muerto | cubrir | cubierto |
Nothing may come between haber and the participle: No he comido — never he no comido.
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