General English Lower Intermediate Level
Lesson 14

Time out

1. Watch the video attentively

Expression to work on

I like playing music and going to concert on my free time

This weekend I am going to see my friend’s band

What do you like doing in your free time?

I like to keep fit, I like to be very active, I like to do a lot of sport, I like to see a lot of friends, I like to go to the theatre

I like to read books about crime novels

For example, I do like go running; obviously, I can’t run when I am at my work, so in my free time I like to do some exercises

Well I have to small children, so I don’t have too much free time, but seeing my friends is one of my great pleasures

I like coming up to London here, seeing galleries, theatres, things like that, I like eating a lot, sometimes with the friends, sometimes alone

I enjoy jazz, although I don’t have any friend to go out to listen to some jazz

I love to do manicures on my free time, I like to read, I like to study quite few things, I am studying oil painting and different languages now

I enjoy reading, playing the guitar, also enjoy creative writings and watching films

What are you going to do this weekend?

This weekend there is a large camping trip for

And we are going off camping, which is going to be very interesting

This weekend I am going to run the whole marathon in Nottingham, raising money for charity

I am going to relax as much as possible after quite a hard week

I’ve got a very stressful week, I will possibly buy a film and do very little

This weekend I going to try to relax a little, I have just completed a long trip

This weekend I am going to take my son to football, he plays in a local football team

This weekend I am going to see some friends on Saturday night and have dinner in their house and then I am going to have some friends

I have a friend, who has a birthday, I am going to go to the birthday party on Saturday, and then on Sunday I am going to a barbecue

2. Questions to discuss

  1. What do you like doing in your free time?
  2. What are you going to do this weekend?
  3. What plans do you have for the next month?

Session 1

If you want to tell someone about things you have - or haven't - done, you'll need the present perfect tense. This is one of the most useful verb forms in English for talking about life experiences. And it's easy to get wrong, so I am here to help. Let's start by looking at some words we'll need to use it.

Activity 1

A bucket list

Things to do before you're 30

It's fun to set yourself a list of things to achieve - but how many of them will you really do? It's becoming popular to create a ‘bucket list’ - things to do before you die or before a certain age. Take a look at the picture and think about the experiences you've had in your life so far.

Complete the activity

Things to do before you're 30
To do

There are six life experiences suggested by the photo. In the next activity, you'll learn which verbs we use to talk about those experiences and activities. That will help you create your own 'bucket list' later on!

Which verb?

Choose the correct verb to go with each activity/experience shown in the picture

Session Vocabulary
  • the Antarctic
    the very cold region that is the most southern part of the world
  • bucket list
    a list of the things you want to do before you reach a certain age, or before you die
  • climb
    to go up something
  • marathon
    a race where people run over a distance of 42 kilometers
  • medal
    a small flat piece of metal that you can win in a competition, or for doing something very brave

Activity 2

Have you ever...?

What about you?

We asked people in London if they have had any of the experiences shown in the picture in Activity 1. Let's find out what they had to say and hear them using present perfect to describe their life experience. There's a quiz after to check how well you know how to form present perfect sentences. 

Listen to the audio and complete the activity

Transcript
  • Joel
    Hi, I'm Joel.
  • Rob
    Hi Joel. Right, we're talking about life experiences, and we have a bucket list challenge. We're going to find out what you have done and what you haven't done in your life starting with: Have you ever climbed a mountain?
  • Joel
    No I haven't. I like safer things. I'm scared of dying too much to climb a mountain.
  • Rob
    Have you ever won a gold medal?
  • Joel
    Not a gold medal but first prize. I'm a guitarist and I've, like, won competitions.
  • Rob
    Have you ever learnt to play the piano?
  • Joel
    I play the guitar but I have learned the piano - for about a year - but then I just decided the guitar was the way to go.
  • Rob
    And have you ever been to the Antarctic?
  • Joel
    No it's way too far, way too cold. I don't like it.
  • Rob
    You wouldn't like to go?
  • Joel
    No!
  • Rob
    Have you ever met a famous footballer?
  • Joel
    No I haven't, which is a bit ironic because I'm from Portugal and there's quite a few like Christiano Ronaldo, Figo…
  • Rob
    And finally, have you ever run a marathon?
  • Joel
    No I'm not much of a sports person. I'm a musician that's what I love doing. I don't like to move!
  • Rob
    Brilliant. Great answers. Thank you very much.
  • Joel
    Cheers.
  • Sadhvi
    Hi I'm Sadhvi.
  • Rob
    Hi Sadhvi. We have a bucket list challenge. Six things I'm going to ask you about. Starting with, number one, have you ever climbed a mountain?
  • Sadhvi
    No I don't think I have actually.
  • Rob
    Number two. Have you ever won a gold medal?
  • Sadhvi
    No I haven't, sadly.
  • Rob
    Moving onto number three. Have you ever learnt to play the piano?
  • Sadhvi
    Yes I have learnt to play the piano – when I was much younger.
  • Rob
    Brilliant. Are you good now?
  • Sadhvi
    No I don't play any more sadly.
  • Rob
    Never mind. How about this one – have you ever been to the Antarctic?
  • Sadhvi
    No I haven't - I would love to though.
  • Rob
    Have you ever met a famous footballer?
  • Sadhvi
    I saw Rio Ferdinand at my local curry house not so long ago.
  • Rob
    And number six, have you ever run a marathon?
  • Sadhvi
    No, definitely not.
  • Rob
    Thank you.
  • Liam
    My name is Liam.
  • Rob
    Hi there Liam. Right, I'm going to ask you about a few things on our bucket list to see if you've done them or not. So let's start with number one, have you ever climbed a mountain?
  • Liam
    I have climbed a mountain.
  • Rob
    Which one?
  • Liam
    Snowdon [in Wales] Yeah, I've climbed Snowdon.
  • Rob
    Next thing. Have you ever won a gold medal?
  • Liam
    I've never won a gold medal. I suppose I have won a gold medal but it's kind of a very informal gold medal at a stag do.
  • Rob
    Next one. Have you ever learnt to play the piano?
  • Liam
    I have never learnt to play the piano. I'd like to, I’d like to, it's a big task but I'd like to.
  • Rob
    Have you ever been to the Antarctic?
  • Liam
    I've never been to the Antarctic, no.
  • Rob
    Have you ever met a famous footballer?
  • Liam
    I've seen famous footballers but I don't think I've actually met one. One day maybe yeah, you never know.
  • Rob
    And finally, have you ever run a marathon?
  • Liam
    I've never run a marathon, but maybe I will in the future.
  • Rob
    Thank you for speaking to us.
  • Nicky
    Hi I'm Nicky.
  • Rob
    Hello Nicky. Right, we've got our bucket list challenge here. First question for you, have you ever climbed a mountain?
  • Nicky
    I've never climbed a mountain.
  • Rob
    And you wouldn't ever climb a mountain?
  • Nicky
    No, absolutely not!
  • Rob
    Have you ever won a gold medal?
  • Nicky
    No, never. Maybe at school but not recently, I've not taken part in the Olympics!
  • Rob
    Have you ever learnt to play the piano?
  • Nicky
    I played the keyboard at school. I wasn't very good so no, I can't play the piano.
  • Rob
    Next question. Have you been to the Antarctic?
  • Nicky
    I've not been to the Antarctic although I would like to go.
  • Rob
    Have you ever met a famous footballer?
  • Nicky
    I've never met a footballer.
  • Rob
    Would you like to?
  • Nicky
    I wouldn't mind!
  • Rob
    Finally, have you ever run a marathon?
  • Nicky
    I've never run a marathon but I would like to run a marathon, in my five-year plan, but I need to learn to run 5K first and then I'll move on. But I would like to.
  • Rob
    Good luck with that and thank you for talking to us.
  • Nicky
    Thank you!
To do

Did you hear what people said they have - and haven't - done? Test yourself in this activity.

Present perfect words

Look at these sentences from the audio we just heard. Choose the correct word to complete them.

  1. Rob asked " you ever run a marathon?"
  2. Sadhvi said "I learnt to play the piano."
  3. Liam said "I have learnt to play the piano."
  4. Nicky said " never met a footballer."
  5. Joel said "I'm a guitarist and won competitions."
  6. What did Sadhvi say about visiting the Antarctic? "No I - but I would love to though."
  7. Liam said "I've never a marathon.”
  8. Nicky said "I've climbed a mountain."
  9. Nicky said "I've been to the Antarctic although I would like to go.”
Next

How many did you get right? People often use the words 'ever' and 'never' with the present perfect tense to talk about life experience. Now it's time to look more closely at haven't and hasn't. 

Explanation

Did you understand what they said? We heard people talking about things they have - and haven't - done in their lives. They don’t say when these things happened, because they are interested in the experience, not the time or date.

For example:

Sara and Carl have travelled all over the world.

I have read that book.

We sometimes say how many times the experience has happened.

For example:

I've met her three times, I think.

Form
Positive

The present perfect is made with subject + have/has + past participle.

I've taught English in Italy and in Russia.

Johnny Depp has starred in lots of brilliant films.

Negative

The negative present perfect is made with subject + have/has not + past participle.

I haven't seen the first Bond film.

Questions

Present perfect yes / no questions are made from have/has + subject + past participle?

Present perfect question word questions are made from question word + have/has + subject + past participle?

Ever and never

We often use the present perfect with the words ever or never. Ever mean at any time in someone’s life. We usually use ever in questions.

'Has he ever worked in China?' 'No, he hasn't.'

Never means not at any time in someone's life.

I've never seen the first Bond film.

Sometimes we ask questions with never. Often we do this to express surprise.

Have you never eaten a banana?

Past participles

The past participle is the third form of the verb. For example, with the verb to see, the three forms are: see, saw, seen.

We use the past participle in present perfect sentences with ever and never.

Have you ever eaten sushi?

I've never seen the first Bond film.

Regular and irregular verbs

Many verbs are regular. The past participle ends with -ed

look looked looked
climb climbed climbed
want wanted wanted

Some verbs are irregular. Here are some of them:

become became become
eat ate eaten
forget forgot forgotten
give gave given
go went gone / been
have had had
know knew known
meet met met
read read read
ride rode ridden
run ran run
say said said
see saw seen
sell sold sold
sing sang sung
win won won 
write wrote written

Some verbs have two possible forms for the past participle. Here are two examples:

learn learnt/learned learnt/learned
dream dreamt/dreamed dreamt/dreamed
To do

Try this activity to test your knowledge of regular and irregular past participles. All of them appear in this unit. There are 10 questions - how many will you get right?

Past participles

Look at the verbs and choose the correct past participle

Activity 3

Have you ever?

Asking questions

Soon we'll show you a great game you can play with your friends to help you practise present perfect questions – but first we need an explanation.

Read the text and complete the activity

sport
To do

Read the grammar explanation and then do the practice activity.

Grammar explanation

We often use the present perfect tense in questions about people’s life experiences.

Questions

Present perfect yes / no questions are made from have/has + subject + past participle + ?

‘Have you met the president?’ ‘Yes, I have.’

Present perfect question word questions are made from question word + have/has + subject + past participle + ?

How many times has she been to Tokyo?

Ever and never

We often use the present perfect with the words ever or never. Ever mean at any time in someone’s life. We usually use ever in questions.

‘Has he ever worked in China?’ ‘No, he hasn’t.’

Never means not at any time in someone’s life.

I’ve never seen the first Bond film.

Sometimes we ask questions with never. Often we do this to express surprise:

Have you never eaten a banana?

Practice

Now have a go at making present perfect questions. Have another look at the grammar explanation if you need help.

Making present perfect questions

Put these words into the correct order to make questions

  1. ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • Have
    • seen
    • a
    • you
    • ever
    • ghost?
  2. ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • food?
    • eaten
    • Indian
    • not
    • ever
    • Have
    • you
  3. ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • you
    • to
    • Have
    • never
    • Antarctic?
    • been
    • ever
    • the
  4. ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • How
    • many
    • you
    • Skyfall?
    • times
    • ever
    • seen
    • have
  5. ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • ever
    • a
    • ridden
    • you
    • camel?
    • Have
  6. ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • China?
    • been
    • have
    • How
    • never
    • many
    • to
    • times
    • you
  7. ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • a
    • marathon?
    • you
    • Has
    • ever
    • run
    • Have
  8. ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • visited?
    • did
    • countries
    • you
    • Which
    • have
  9. ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • met
    • meet
    • anyone
    • famous?
    • Have
    • ever
    • you
  10. ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • never
    • ever
    • Have
    • mountain?
    • a
    • you
    • climbed

Activity 4

Have You Ever?

A present perfect game

Here is a good way to practise using the present perfect and have fun too. Watch Rob and Sophie ask each other questions and listen to their answers.

Afterwards, have a go at playing the game with your friends.

Watch the video

Transcript
  • Rob
    Hello Sophie.
  • Sophie
    Hi Rob.
  • Rob
    I've got a little game to play - are you ready?
  • Sophie
    Yes, I'm totally ready!
  • Rob
    I've got some questions to ask you.
  • Sophie
    I have got some questions too.
  • Rob
    You go first.
  • Sophie
    Ok, awesome. So Rob, have you ever seen a ghost?
  • Rob
    I've never seen a ghost and I don't want to see one either!
  • Sophie
    No – I don’t think I would either.
  • Rob
    Question for you. Have you ever eaten Indian food?
  • Sophie
    No, I've never eaten Indian food. I've got a really bad nut allergy so I, I can't eat curries, it's really sad.
  • Rob
    Oh, you're missing out. Ok, your turn.
  • Sophie
    Have you ever been to the Antarctic?
  • Rob
    I've never been to the Antarctic - I would love to go. It's on my wish list of places to visit.
  • Sophie
    It would be amazing.
  • Rob
    Ok - question for you. Have you ever ridden a camel?
  • Sophie
    No, I have never ridden a camel but that would be awesome.
  • Rob
    Yeah - I have actually: I enjoyed that. Ok, off you go.
  • Sophie
    Have you ever run a marathon?
  • Rob
    No, I've never run a marathon and I never will run a marathon either.
  • Sophie
    No, me neither!
  • Rob
    I'm too lazy.
  • Sophie
    I'm not much of a keen runner!
  • Rob
    And a question for you.  Have you ever met anyone famous?
  • Sophie
    Do you know what, I have! I met Sir Ian McKellen at my place of work, and I served him a large glass of house white wine and a packet of crisps. And he was lovely.
  • Rob
    Fantastic! Glad to hear that.
  • Sophie
    Right, final question for you Rob, are you ready? Have you ever climbed a mountain?
  • Rob
    Oh yes, I have climbed many mountains actually, and I love climbing up mountains: it's a great experience.
  • Sophie
    That sounds awesome.
  • Rob
    Good game!
  • Sophie
    Great game.
  • Rob
    So what have you done at home?
To do

Now have a look at these sentences. Decide if they are grammatically correct.

Right or wrong?

Put the correct and wrong sentences into the right columns.

  • I've never walked up Everest
  • I'd never walk up Everest
  • I've run a marathon
  • I've met a famous footballer
  • I've ever not been to the Antarctic
  • I've learnt to play the piano
  • I've ran a marathon
  • I've learn to play the piano
  • I've never won a gold medal
  • I'm met a famous footballer
  • I have never been to the Antarctic
  • I have never winned a gold medal
Right Wrong
Grammar Exercises

Present Perfect

Meaning and use

Positive 

The present perfect is made with subject + have/has + past participle.

I've taught English in Italy and in Russia.

Johnny Depp has starred in lots of brilliant films. 

Negative

The negative present perfect is made with subject + have/has not + past participle.

I haven't seen the first Bond film.

I haven't seen the first Bond film.

Questions

Present perfect yes/no questions are made from have/has + subject + past participle?

Present perfect question word questions are made from question word + have/has + subject + past participle?

Ever and never

We often use the present perfect with the words ever or never. Ever mean at any time in someone's life. We usually use ever in questions.

'Has he ever worked in China?' 'No, he hasn't.'

Never means not at any time in someone's life.

I've never seen the first Bond film.

Sometimes we ask questions with never. Often we do this to express surprise:

Have you never eaten a banana? 

Past participles

The past participle is the third form of the verb. For example, with the verb to see, the three forms are: see, saw, seen.

We use the past participle in present perfect sentences with ever and never.

Have you ever eaten sushi?

I've never seen the first Bond film.

Regular and irregular verbs

Many verbs are regular. The past participle ends with -ed

look looked looked
climb climbed climbed
want wanted wanted

Some verbs are irregular. Here are some of them:

become became become
eat ate eaten
forget forgot forgotten
give gave given
go went gone / been
have had had
know knew known
meet met met
read read read
ride rode ridden
run ran run
say said said
see saw seen
sell sold sold
sing sang sung
win won won 
write wrote written

Exercise

Present Perfect - Positive 1

Make the positive present perfect

  1. (I / study / French)  .
  2. (She / eat / octopus)  .
  3. (They / go / to Scotland)  .
  4. (We / read / that book)  .
  5. (He / live / here for three years)  .
  6. (You / know / David for ten years)  .
  7. (We / be / here for two weeks)  .
  8. (I / lose / my keys)  .
  9. (He / drink / too much coffee)  .
  1. (She / go / to the library today)  .
  2. (you / keep a pet for three years)  .
  3. (you / eat Thai food before)?  .
  4. (it / rain all day)?  .
  5. (who / we / forget to invite)?  .
  6. (we / not / hear that song already)  .
  7. (he / not / forget his books)  .
  8. (she / steal all the chocolate)  .
  9. (I / explain it well)?  .
  10. (who / he / meet recently)?  .
  11. (how / we / finish already)?  .
Homework

1. Learn the topic vocabulary

2. Learn the grammar

Activity 1

Susan Boyle's life story

I Dreamed a Dream

Susan Boyle has had an interesting journey to fame. She became well known after her appearance on a British TV talent show. Read more about her here, and see what examples of present perfect you can spot.

Read the text and complete the activity

Susan Boyle's life story

For Susan Boyle, the last few years have been like a fairy tale. Before she appeared on a British TV talent show in 2009, she was a shy, middle-aged woman from Scotland. Then she sang ‘I dreamed a dream’ from the musical Les Miserables for her audition and she became famous overnight. She didn’t win the contest, but the YouTube video of her performance has been watched by millions of people and her debut album I dreamed a dream has sold over 9 million copies.

The road to stardom hasn’t been easy for Susan. She was born in 1961 in a small Scottish town, the youngest of nine children. She had some learning difficulties and was bullied at school. She left with few qualifications and she has had just one job as a cook at a college. But singing was always part of Susan’s life – at school and at her local church and pub. She had singing lessons and auditioned for talent shows, but she never found the success she was looking for. It was her mother who encouraged her to enter the popular UK Britain’s Got Talent show. The rest is history.

So, how has life changed for this unlikely celebrity? Things have never been quite the same since that extraordinary night in January 2009. She has performed to audiences of thousands of fans and has just completed a huge tour of the UK and the US. Known to the press - and to many of her fans - as SuBo, she has recorded six albums and sold millions of copies. Although she hasn’t won a Grammy award, she has been nominated twice.

But Susan has never forgotten where she came from. She still lives in Scotland. She has bought a new house, but she hasn’t sold the home where she grew up. She has never married or had children, but she has said that she would like to adopt a child. Her powerful voice has given pleasure to millions of fans all over the world. But above all, perhaps, she has been an inspiration for all the people who have ever wanted to follow a dream.

To do

She's had an interesting life, hasn't she?

Has she or hasn't she?

Decide if these sentences about Susan Boyle's life are true or false, according to the article.

  • She has been married
  • She has had children
  • She has made six CDs
  • She won 'Britain’s Got Talent'
  • She has won two Grammy awards
  • She has worked as a cook
  • She has bought a house
  • She has never had singing lessons
Right Wrong
Session Vocabulary
  • audition
    a short test in which you sing, act, dance or play an instrument to show if you are good enough to be in a play, show, concert, etc.
  • performance
    singing, acting, dancing or playing an instrument in front of other people
  • debut
    first (often used to describe the first CD made by a singer)
  • stardom
    being very famous, usually as a singer, actor or dancer
  • to bully
    to act in a threatening way towards other people, often making them do something they don’t want to do
  • celebrity
    famous person
  • the press
    news media including newspapers, magazines, online news sites etc.
  • award
    prize you get for an achievement
  • to nominate
    to recommend someone for a prize or job
  • to adopt
    to bring up someone else’s child as if they are your own child
  • perhaps
    maybe
  • inspiration
    (here) a person who you admire and try to be like
To do

Let's try to describe what she's achieved using the present perfect tense.

SuBo in the present perfect

Make present perfect sentences about Susan Boyle's life

  • ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • sold
    • has
    • of
    • Boyle
    • Susan
    • records
    • millions
  • ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • easy
    • to
    • stardom
    • her
    • been
    • hasn't
    • for
    • The
    • road
  • ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • Boyle
    • for
    • Susan
    • has
    • Life
    • changed
  • ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • has
    • sold
    • home
    • her
    • never
    • childhood
    • She
  • ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • Grammy
    • for
    • been
    • awards
    • has
    • two
    • nominated
    • She
  • ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • have
    • given
    • 'SuBo'
    • her
    • nickname
    • fans
    • Her
    • the
  • ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • She
    • fans
    • inspiration
    • many
    • for
    • an
    • her
    • been
    • has
  • ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______ ______
    • has
    • given
    • people
    • millions
    • Her
    • to
    • pleasure
    • voice
    • of

Activity 3

Pronunciation workout

Limber up!

To talk about life using the present perfect try out this pronunciation workout where you get to listen and repeat some key words and phrases. Make way for Sophie.

Transcript

Hi it's Sophie here with a pronunciation workout. It's a chance for you to listen and then repeat.

When talking in the present perfect, the ‘a’ sound in have or has is not usually pronounced strongly. It uses the Ə (‘uh’) sound -  more like the vowel sound in butter, and not the vowel sound in cat.  So, have sounds like /hƏv/ and has sounds like /hƏz/. Come on, let's say it together…

I have been to London… I have been to London… [pause]

She has learnt to speak English… She has learnt to speak English… [pause]

You can contract the words 'I have' to 'I've' – I've been to London.  I've been to London. You try it now… [pause]

And 'she has' or 'he has' becomes 'she's' or 'he's' – She's learnt to speak English. She's learnt to speak English. You try it… [pause]

In the negative form – 'have not' is usually contracted and pronounced haven’t – and 'has not' is usually said as hasn’t. Note, the ‘a’ sound is strong, as in cat.

Have you got that? Now repeat after me…

Haven't…         I haven't been to London… I haven't been to London… [pause]

Hasn't…           She hasn't learnt to speak English….   She hasn't learnt to speak English… [pause]

When speaking in the present perfect we often use the words 'ever' and 'never' – and it's good to know how to stress these words. Repeat after me…

Never… never…  I've never been to London. I've never been to London… [pause]

She's never eaten Indian food… She's never eaten Indian food. [pause]

Ever… ever… Have you ever been to London? Have you ever been to London? [pause]

Has she ever eaten Indian food? Has she ever eaten Indian food? [pause]

How did you get on? Well done. Bye for now.

Exercises

Put the verbs into the correct form (present perfect simple).

  1. li I (not / work)  today.
  2. li We (buy)  a new lamp.
  3. li We (not / plan)  our holiday yet.
  4. li Where (be / you) ?
  5. li He (write)  five letters.
  6. li She (not / see)  him for a long time.
  7. li (be / you)  at school?
  8. li School (not / start)  yet.
  9. li (speak / he)  to his boss?
  10. li No, he (have / not) 

Activity 2

Over to You!

What have you done?

Present perfect is used to talk about life experiences. Now it's over to you to talk about yours, remembering to use what you've learnt.

To do

Write down the things you have and haven't done.

Write down the things you have and haven't done.