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The present perfect is a grammatical combination of the present tense and perfect aspect that is used to express a past event that has present consequences. [1] The term is used particularly in the context of English grammar to refer to forms like "I have finished".
In Latin, the sequence of tenses rule affects dependent verbs in the subjunctive mood, mainly in indirect questions, indirect commands, and purpose clauses. [4] If the main verb is in one of the non-past tenses, the subordinate verb is usually in the present or perfect subjunctive (primary sequence); if the main verb is in one of the past tenses, the subordinate verb is usually in the ...
The aorist participle represents the first event of a two-event sequence and the present participle represents an ongoing event at the time of another event. [25] Perfect verbs stood for past actions if the result is still present (e.g. 'I have found it') or for present states resulting from a past event (e.g. 'I remember').
The perfect passive and perfect deponent can be used like an English perfect tense, describing a present state resulting from an earlier event: [111] passer mortuus est meae puellae (Catullus) [112] 'my girlfriend's pet sparrow is dead / has died' The negative of the perfect often has the meaning 'has not yet done': nōndum satis cōnstituī ...
(present progressive passive) The stadium will have been built by next January. (future perfect passive) I would have got/gotten [32] injured if I had stayed in my place. (conditional perfect passive with get) It isn't nice to be insulted. (passive infinitive) Having been humiliated, he left the stage. (passive present participle, perfect aspect)
There is a perfect infinitive (to) have written and a perfect progressive infinitive (to) have been writing, and corresponding present participle/gerund forms having written and having been writing. A perfect subjunctive (have written) is also sometimes used. Future and conditional perfect forms are given below.
The present perfect may also be used with future reference, instead of the future perfect, in those dependent clauses where future occurrence is denoted by present tense (see § Dependent clauses below). For example: When you have written it, show it to me. For the possibility of a present perfect subjunctive, see English subjunctive.
Another way of expressing a passive verb in the apodosis of an unreal conditional in indirect speech is to use the perfect infinitive of possum combined with a present passive infinitive; that is, to write 'could have been done' instead of 'would have been done', since the two are close in meaning: [183]