Past Simple and Present Perfect Tenses

Understand the differences between past simple and present perfect tenses with our comprehensive video lesson.

This video lesson breaks down these differences  between the past simple and present perfect tenses with clear examples.

Consider this sentence: "I have visited China in 2018." What's wrong with it? When referring to a specific point in time in the past, we should use the past simple tense. Therefore, the correct sentence is: "I visited China in 2018."

The present perfect tense, on the other hand, is used without specifying a particular time. For example, "I have visited China." This implies that the experience of visiting China has an impact on the current situation or conversation.

In summary:

• Use the past simple tense for actions completed at a specific time in the past.
• Use the present perfect tense to indicate that an action has relevance to the present moment without specifying when it occurred. 

Knowing when to use past simple and present perfect tenses will help you convey your meaning more correctly.