A
The Chinese (invented/have invented) paper.
invented (simple past--historical fact)
This is the third piece of cake that you (ate/have eaten) today.
have eaten (present perfect--from past until present)
She (died/has died) four months ago.
died (simple past--completed action, finished time period)
My notebook isn’t here anymore. Someone (took/has taken) it.
has taken (present perfect--past action affecting/related to present)
The car industry (suffered/has suffered) huge losses since the factory workers began their strike.
has suffered (present perfect--from past until present)
They (finished/had finished) eating dinner by the time I got home.
had finished (past perfect--past even completed before a second past event)
When they (arrived/have arrived) at the party, Sue (already went/had already gone) home.
arrived, had already gone (past perfect--past event completed before a second past event)
When he (slammed/had slammed) the door, the picture (fell/has fallen) off the wall.
slammed, fell (simple past--past actions connected to each other)
She said she (paid/had paid) the bill a week before.
had paid (past perfect--double past action)
How long (were you/have you been) a doctor?
have you been (present perfect--from past until present)
At last, I ___ my project. Now I can take a break. a. completed b. had completed c. have completed
c. have completed (present perfect--recent completed action)
When I ___ shut off my computer, it crashed. a. tried to b. had tried to c. have tried to d. try to
a. tried to (simple past--past actions connected to each other)
How many times ___ to this CD? a. were you listening b. had you listened c. have you listened d. do you listen
c. have you listened (present perfect--from past until present)
She said that her husband ___ fishing the previous night. a. had go b. has gone c. would go d. had gone
d. had gone (past perfect--double past action)
After I ___ dinner, I sat down to watch TV. a. ate b. had eaten c. have eaten d. was eating
b. had eaten (past perfect--double past action)
When I (open) the window, the cat jumped in.
opened (simple past--past actions connected to each other)
He can’t drive us today because he ________ (lose) his car keys.
has lost (present perfect--recent past action affecting/related to present)
After I _______ (finish) washing the dishes, I did some vacuuming.
had finished (past perfect--double past action)
The police found that the criminal ________ (leave) his house at least two hours before the robbery took place.
had left (past perfect--past event completed before a second past event)
At last I ________ (finish) all the homework exercises.
have finished (present perfect--recent completed action)
Correct the mistake:
He had catched the train for Chicago at seven yesterday morning, but nobody knows of his whereabouts now.
had catched → caught (past simple--completed past action)
Correct the mistake:
I studied English for the past five years, but I still have difficulty speaking and writing.
studied → have studied (present perfect--from past until present)
Correct the mistake:
He had given me the report but I haven’t looked at it at all yet.
had given → gave
Correct the mistake:
When I was in high school, I had often wished to be taller.
had often wished → often wished (simple past--completed action, finished time period)
Correct the mistake:
He has wished to remarry, but ended up not doing so, probably because of his daughter’s objections.
has wished → had wished (past perfect--double past action)