Learn how to use the present perfect tense of English verbs
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Chihiro: Hey, everybody! It’s Chihiro. |
| Ryan: Hello! I’m Ryan. Have You Scheduled an Appointment in English? |
| Chihiro: In this lesson, you'll learn how to schedule an appointment. |
| Ryan: This conversation takes place on the phone. |
| Chihiro: The conversation is between Sandra the dentist receptionist. |
| Ryan: And they will be speaking formally. |
| Chihiro: Okay, let’s listen to the conversation. |
Lesson conversation |
|---|
| Dentist Receptionist: Hello, Pearly Whites. How can I help you? |
| Sandra: Hi, I would like to schedule a checkup please. |
| Dentist Receptionist: Sure. Have you been here before? |
| Sandra: No, it’s my first time. |
| Dentist Receptionist: Okay. Do you have insurance? |
| Sandra: Yes, I have FamCare insurance. |
| Dentist Receptionist: Okay, and is there any particular reason for your visit? |
| Sandra: Yes, I think I might have a cavity… again. Must be the ice-cream |
| Dentist Receptionist: Yes, that could be a cause. Okay let me see… Doctor Reeves is available tomorrow at three. |
| Sandra: Hmm… that won’t work for me. How about this Thursday after four? |
| Dentist Receptionist: Ummm… yes, he’s available at four. |
| Sandra: Perfect. |
| Dentist Receptionist: Okay, I’ll put you in for that time. So that’s Thursday the third at four. |
| Sandra: That sums it up. |
| Dentist Receptionist: Thanks for calling Pearly Whites. |
| Sandra: Thanks. |
| English Host: Let’s hear the conversation one time slowly. |
| Dentist Receptionist: Hello, Pearly Whites. How can I help you? |
| Sandra: Hi, I would like to schedule a checkup please. |
| Dentist Receptionist: Sure. Have you been here before? |
| Sandra: No, it’s my first time. |
| Dentist Receptionist: Okay. Do you have insurance? |
| Sandra: Yes, I have FamCare insurance. |
| Dentist Receptionist: Okay, and is there any particular reason for your visit? |
| Sandra: Yes, I think I might have a cavity… again. Must be the ice-cream |
| Dentist Receptionist: Yes, that could be a cause. Okay let me see… Doctor Reeves is available tomorrow at three. |
| Sandra: Hmm… that won’t work for me. How about this Thursday after four? |
| Dentist Receptionist: Ummm… yes, he’s available at four. |
| Sandra: Perfect. |
| Dentist Receptionist: Okay, I’ll put you in for that time. So that’s Thursday the third at four. |
| Sandra: That sums it up. |
| Dentist Receptionist: Thanks for calling Pearly Whites. |
| Sandra: Thanks. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Chihiro: So, Ryan, do you like to call or do you like to do things online? |
| Ryan: I usually like to call. How about you? |
| Chihiro: Uh, for me it’s whichever is faster. For something like a dentist's appointment I'd probably call though. |
| Ryan: Listeners, you can schedule an appointment online if the dentist that you plan to go to has that service. Otherwise, like Chihiro, you may have to, or may prefer, to call the dentist's office yourself. |
| Chihiro: They may ask you the reason for your visit so that they can estimate how long you'll be in with the dentist. If the dentist finds something in the checkup, then, in most cases, they will schedule you for another appointment and not fix the problem there. |
| Ryan: So if you feel pain in your tooth and think that you have something, expect to be visiting the dentist more than once. That's why it's important to find a dentist you feel comfortable with. |
| Chihiro: Yeah, too bad they haven't come up with an instant tooth cure yet; you still have to visit the dentist. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Ryan: Let's take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. |
| : The first word we shall see is: |
| Chihiro: pearly [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: shiny white like a pearl |
| Chihiro: pearly [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chihiro: pearly [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Chihiro: schedule [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: plan for an activity or event or day; agenda |
| Chihiro: schedule [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chihiro: schedule [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Chihiro: checkup [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: exam done by a doctor on a person to see the well being of that person |
| Chihiro: checkup [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chihiro: checkup [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Chihiro: insurance [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: agreement where a person makes payments to a company, in promise that the company will pay money in the case of injury or thing agreed upon |
| Chihiro: insurance [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chihiro: insurance [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Chihiro: particular [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: specific, no others are referred |
| Chihiro: particular [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chihiro: particular [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Chihiro: cavity [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: hole in the tooth caused by decay |
| Chihiro: cavity [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chihiro: cavity [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Chihiro: cause [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: something that creates a result |
| Chihiro: cause [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chihiro: cause [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Chihiro: available [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: not busy, easy to get or use |
| Chihiro: available [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chihiro: available [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Chihiro: to sum up [natural native speed] |
| Ryan: to say again in different and less words than before |
| Chihiro: to sum up [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Chihiro: to sum up [natural native speed] |
| KEY VOCABULARY AND PHRASES |
| Ryan: Let’s have a closer look at the usage for some of the phrases from this lesson. |
| Chihiro: The first phrase is, "that won't work for me." |
| Ryan: Sandra says this when she tells the receptionist that she is unavailable for the time suggested. You can use this phrase when something doesn't fit your schedule, as did Sandra, or if you disagree to a suggestion. For example, if somebody says, |
| Chihiro: "let's go eat seafood" |
| Ryan: you could respond, |
| Chihiro: "that won't work for me, I'm allergic to seafood." |
| Ryan: It has a stronger tone to it when used this way. |
| Chihiro: Okay, the next phrase we'll look at is, |
| Ryan: "that sums it up." |
| Chihiro: Sandra says this to agree with what the receptionist has said. In other words the receptionist has put together the most important parts of the conversation in brief. |
| Ryan: Good, that sums that up. |
Lesson focus |
| Ryan: The focus of this lesson is the present perfect form. Let's talk about it in question form. |
| Chihiro: Most of you may already know it. But we'd like to go over this one because it's one that is often misused. |
| Ryan: True, especially if your native language doesn't have a similar form to this, it might be hard to use it. So, let's concentrate on this form today and hopefully you'll be able to understand it better. |
| Chihiro: Let's take a look at this sentence, |
| Ryan: "Have you been here before?" |
| Chihiro: This question is in the present perfect form. The present perfect means that the action happened before now, but is relevant to the present. In the dialog, the receptionist asks Sandra, “have you been here before?” in the present perfect form, because his prior visit is relevant to the now or present. |
| Ryan: This is a common question form to ask whether or not people did something in the past, because that experience usually may have some kind of connection to the present. |
| Chihiro: Now, you might have guessed by now the construction of this question is the verb "to have" + subject + past participle. |
| Ryan: The verb "to have" is conjugated according to the subject. For example, |
| Chihiro: Have you seen that movie? |
| Ryan: Yes I have, so let's watch another one. |
| Chihiro: Here, Ryan's experience of watching the movie connects to the present because he saw the movie and remembers the movie, and therefore makes the decision of choosing another. |
| Ryan: It is common to use words such as ever, yet and just in such a construction. Words such as yesterday, last week, an hour ago or other words that choose a specific time are not usually used in combination with the present perfect. This is because it doesn't connect it to the present. Here are examples using ever, yet and just. |
| Chihiro: Ryan, have you ever been to Costa Rica before? |
| Ryan: No, I've never been there. I heard it's beautiful. |
| Chihiro: The word “ever” emphasizes the question of “at any time, have you been to Costa Rica?”. Here’s another question. |
| Ryan: Have you eaten dinner yet? |
| Chihiro: No, not yet, so let's eat together. |
| Ryan: The word “yet” emphasizes the question of “so far, have you eaten dinner?”. And the next example is, |
| Chihiro: Has he just arrived? |
| Ryan: It looks like it. |
| Chihiro: Here “just” emphasizes the question “has he very recently arrived?”. |
| Ryan: Remember, that in order to construct this question, you need to know your past participle form. Sometimes the form is the same as a verb in past tense, and sometimes it's not, so watch out for those and keep on practicing them. |
| Chihiro: And for those of you who are still having trouble with this construction, listen to how some native speakers use it. You’ll soon catch on. |
Outro |
| Ryan: That just about does it for today. Remember, you can leave us a comment on this lesson. |
| Chihiro: See you all soon. |
| Ryan: Bye for now! |
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