Simple Past vs Present Perfect
We use the simple past with finished past time expressions such as yesterday, last week, last month, last year, and last night.
We use the present perfect with unfinished time expressions such as today, this week, this month, and this year.
Example: I went to the dentist yesterday.
[Ich ging gestern zum Zahnarzt.]
Example: She has finished the report today.
[Sie hat den Bericht heute fertiggestellt.]
1. I ______ to the dentist yesterday. (past time expression = yesterday)
went
a) have gone
b) went
[Ich ging gestern zum Zahnarzt.]
2. She ______ the report today. (unfinished time expression = today)
has finished
a) has finished
b) finished
[Sie hat den Bericht heute fertiggestellt.]
3. We ______ the new manager last week. (past time expression = last week)
met
a) met
b) have met
[Wir trafen den neuen Manager letzte Woche.]
4. I ______ to him this week. (unfinished time expression = this week)
have spoken
a) spoke
b) have spoken
[Ich habe diese Woche mit ihm gesprochen.]
5. They ______ their parents last month. (past time expression = last month)
visited
a) have visited
b) visited
[Sie besuchten ihre Eltern letzten Monat.]
6. She ______ three emails today. (unfinished time expression = today)
has written
a) has written
b) wrote
[Sie hat heute drei E-Mails geschrieben.]
7. I ______ that film last year. (past time expression = last year)
saw
a) saw
b) have seen
[Ich sah diesen Film letztes Jahr.]
8. We ______ two meetings this week. (unfinished time expression = this week)
have had
a) had
b) have had
[Wir hatten diese Woche zwei Meetings.]
9. He ______ a new laptop last month. (past time expression = last month)
bought
a) bought
b) has bought
[Er kaufte letzten Monat einen neuen Laptop.]
10. I ______ two chapters today. (unfinished time expression = today)
have read
a) have read
b) read
[Ich habe heute zwei Kapitel gelesen.]
11. They ______ us last night. (past time expression = last night)
called
a) have called
b) called
[Sie riefen uns letzte Nacht an.]
12. She ______ a lot this year. (unfinished time expression = this year)
has travelled
a) travelled
b) has travelled
[Sie ist dieses Jahr viel gereist.]
13. I ______ my keys yesterday. (past time expression = yesterday)
lost
a) lost
b) have lost
[Ich verlor gestern meine Schlüssel.]
14. We ______ the project this week. (unfinished time expression = this week)
have completed
a) have completed
b) completed
[Wir haben das Projekt diese Woche abgeschlossen.]
15. He ______ her last year. (past time expression = last year)
met
a) has met
b) met
[Er traf sie letztes Jahr.]
16. I ______ my messages today. (unfinished time expression = today)
have checked
a) checked
b) have checked
[Ich habe heute meine Nachrichten überprüft.]
17. They ______ Berlin last week. (past time expression = last week)
visited
a) visited
b) have visited
[Sie besuchten Berlin letzte Woche.]
18. She ______ many new words this month. (unfinished time expression = this month)
has learned
a) has learned
b) learned
[Sie hat diesen Monat viele neue Wörter gelernt.]
19. We ______ the training last month. (past time expression = last month)
finished
a) have finished
b) finished
[Wir beendeten das Training letzten Monat.]
20. I ______ with the client today. (unfinished time expression = today)
have spoken
a) have spoken
b) spoke
[Ich habe heute mit dem Kunden gesprochen.]
21. He ______ to the gym last night. (past time expression = last night)
went
a) went
b) has gone
[Er ging letzte Nacht ins Fitnessstudio.]
22. We ______ good progress this week. (unfinished time expression = this week)
have made
a) made
b) have made
[Wir haben diese Woche gute Fortschritte gemacht.]
23. She ______ a new car last year. (past time expression = last year)
bought
a) has bought
b) bought
[Sie kaufte letztes Jahr ein neues Auto.]
24. I ______ five emails today. (unfinished time expression = today)
have written
a) have written
b) wrote
[Ich habe heute fünf E-Mails geschrieben.]
25. They ______ their new neighbours last month. (past time expression = last month)
met
a) met
b) have met
[Sie trafen ihre neuen Nachbarn letzten Monat.]
Eine weitere sehr einfache Erklärung für das Present Perfect ist die Verwendung mit Zeiträumen wie:
today, this week, this month, this year
Der wichtige Punkt ist:
Der Zeitraum ist noch nicht vorbei.
Wir befinden uns noch in diesem Zeitraum, deshalb verwendet man oft das Present Perfect.
Beispiele mit today
I have spoken to three clients today.
(Ich habe heute mit drei Kunden gesprochen.)
She has written five emails today.
(Sie hat heute fünf E-Mails geschrieben.)
Der Tag ist noch nicht zu Ende.
Beispiele mit this week
We have had two meetings this week.
(Wir hatten diese Woche zwei Meetings.)
I have worked a lot this week.
(Ich habe diese Woche viel gearbeitet.)
Die Woche läuft noch.
Beispiele mit this month
The company has hired three new employees this month.
(Die Firma hat diesen Monat drei neue Mitarbeiter eingestellt.)
I have travelled a lot this month.
(Ich bin diesen Monat viel gereist.)
Der Monat ist noch nicht vorbei.
Beispiele mit this year
Our company has opened a new office this year.
(Unsere Firma hat dieses Jahr ein neues Büro eröffnet.)
I have read many books this year.
(Ich habe dieses Jahr viele Bücher gelesen.)
Das Jahr ist noch nicht zu Ende.
Vergleich
Present Perfect (Zeitraum noch offen)
I have met many interesting people this year.
(Dieses Jahr – und das Jahr läuft noch.)
Past Simple (Zeitraum abgeschlossen)
I met many interesting people last year.
(Letztes Jahr – das Jahr ist vorbei.)
Merkhilfe
Wenn der Zeitraum noch läuft, benutzt man oft Present Perfect:
-
today
-
this week
-
this month
-
this year
-
this morning / this afternoon / this evening (wenn der Zeitraum noch andauert)