<p>Yes, you can use 有 to form present perfect tense, consider the following examples:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>In mainland, people usually don't use 有 (to me it sounds a bit childish and made me think of a little girl.) :</p>

<p>Michel: 你看过 "Pride and Prejudice" 没? Have you ever read ...</p>

<p>Emily: (我)看过。 I have read it.</p></li>
<li><p>In Hong Kong or Taiwan, looks like it's frequently used (I haven't been there but in quite a lot of TV series and variety shows the celebrities often use it, friends from there may correct me if I'm wrong)</p>

<p>Michel: "你有看(过) 'Pride and Prejudice' 没?"</p>

<p>Emily: "(我)有看(过)啊，很好看的。" (I have read it.)</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Here you can see, since you have used 有, 过 becomes optional.</p>

<p>As for 有 and 过, in order to form a perfect tense you should at least use one, depends on which tone do you want to use from the previous examples.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-26T09:59:21.067Z
Except that this looks rather contrived (at least to the language police). The meaning is absolutely the same if 有 is removed.
Wang Dingwei
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-10-07T08:12:02.313Z
Haha, I live in Hong Kong and I'm studying a Chinese course. It is just now that I found out I misused `有` and `會` (`本班列車不會載客`) in my past ~20 years writing essays.
Daniel Cheung
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-19T03:33:33.590Z
2016-10-06T06:23:51.547Z
2016-10-06T06:23:51.547Z
maverickpuss
<p>I believe the question is more complicated than a misuse in Taiwan. In Xinhua dictionary, <code>有</code> has a meaning of <code>yield</code> or <code>have happened</code>.</p>

<p>Consider the short sentence.</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>情况有变化。</p>
</blockquote>

<p>It is a rough paraphrase to <code>情况变了</code>. <code>了</code> is, of course a perfect tense word. So could we also regard <code>有</code> here as a perfect tense word too?</p>

<p>Sadly, among linguists there is still controversy upon the issue. I would personally suggest <code>情况有变化</code> emits a stronger feeling of <code>Situations have changed</code> than <code>There are changes in situations</code>.</p>

<p>Consider another phrase</p>

<blockquote>
  <p>有辱师门</p>
</blockquote>

<p>What <code>有</code> means here? The phrase does manifest a solid meaning of <code>have shamed masters</code> instead of <code>Something exists, which shames masters</code>.</p>

<p>The only consensus researchers have reached so far is <code>有</code> doesn't act as an auxiliary verb. The word is still a transitive verb. So you feel OK when the following word/phrase is both a verb or a noun, or is often regarded as a noun, namely a gerund. But it is weird when conditions are not met.</p>

<p>An idea comes to my mind that we may need a 'perfect tense' scale. From the weakest to the strongest lies <code>有</code>, <code>过</code> and <code>了</code>. Improper combinations of 'past tense' word and the following verb give strange impressions.</p>

<p>Besides, I would remind you <code>有</code> is more of an aspect word, rather than a tense word. It only implies perfect, not necessarily present. For instance, <code>情况有过变化</code> has a stronger meaning of <code>Situations had changed.</code> And sometimes the word's meaning is probably overrided, such as <code>在这几年里，情况有变化</code> (<code>Situations are changing in the past few years.</code>).</p>

<p>I'm not a professional studying Chinese. Feel free to challenge me if you have different ideas. Finally I'd like to point out language itself is a <em>evolving</em> magic, maybe one day today's misuse would become tomorrow's fashion.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-21T17:30:13.103Z
2016-09-21T17:30:13.103Z
Keyu Gan
<p>This is an really interesting question. It is actually a wrong usage in Taiwanese Mandarin. Since we speak a lot of Taiwanese here, the usage of adding 有 in showing past perfect is effected by Taiwanese or which called "Minnan" dialect.</p>

<p>In standard Chinese grammar, for example:
<strong>I have read the book. 我讀過那本書。
---->我有讀過那本書。
Have you had dinner? 吃過飯了嗎？
---->有吃飯了嗎？</strong></p>

<p>If you get someone who can speak Minnan dialect, it will sound perfectly smooth in Minnan. However, it became an incorrect usage that used by everyone in Taiwan.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-20T08:59:46.723Z
2016-09-20T09:09:44.987Z
2016-09-20T09:09:44.987Z
Ani
<p>“我有看过”= “我看过” it means I have read it.
"有" emphasis that have already do something. </p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-22T04:23:49.777Z
2016-09-22T04:23:49.777Z
Lisa  Wang
<p>I'm from southern China. In my experience, 过 is used more to form present perfect tense than 有.</p>

<p>But sometimes people do use 有. It seems more common in Taiwan mandarin, or at least "stereotypical" Taiwan mandarin.</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-18T05:50:05.480Z
2016-09-18T05:50:05.480Z
Lucius Hu
<p>One meaning of 有 is "have" i.e. possess. Can 有 also be used to form the present perfect tense as in "I have looked", possibly "我有看"?</p>

<p>If so, then a follow-up question: what is more natural, using 有 or 过?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-18T03:01:20.657Z
Yes, but it's a typical case of *translationese*, at least in China mainland. Many think *translationese* is negative.
ElpieKay
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-18T05:22:29.850Z
this has come up before and answered by link to 
What does the construction 有 ＋ Verb mean? https://www.italki.com/question/200801
user6065
CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-09-20T12:40:34.017Z
Only in Taiwan.
Enrico Brasil
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-03-21T05:49:03.107Z
@EnricoBrasil, yeah, Taiwanese like to use 有+verb. Mainlanders perfer verb+过. Nevertheless, both can be clearly understood.
Zhang
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-03-21T05:59:45.630Z
我想了一下，“有看”和“看过”还是略微有些差别的。Scenario：老师交待学生回去要看某本书。第二天，有位学生回答不上来老师提问的关于那本书里的内容。老师问他，“我交待的书你有没有看过？”如果回答“有看过”，那表明很可能只是看了一眼，没有认真阅读。如果回答“我看过。”有点完整看过的意思，如果为了表明自己没有认真看，可以补充一句，“只不过没有好好看。”
Zhang
CC BY-SA 4.0
2019-03-21T06:03:52.200Z
用“有”，不一定就是perfect tense。比如“有在看”，就是正在进行时？我也不知道英语里这种情况用什么时态，比如一本书，我最近一直在看，但此时此刻，我没有盯着它在看。
Zhang
<grammar>
Can 有 be used to form present perfect tense?
# Can 有 be used to form present perfect tense?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-09-17)

One meaning of 有 is "have" i.e. possess. Can 有 also be used to form the present perfect tense as in "I have looked", possibly "我有看"?

If so, then a follow-up question: what is more natural, using 有 or 过?

**Tags:** grammar

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: Yes, but it's a typical case of *translationese*, at least in China mainland. Many think *translationese* is negative.  
> **username_2**: this has come up before and answered by link to  What does the construction 有 ＋ Verb mean? https://www.italki.com/question/200801  
> **username_3**: Only in Taiwan.  
> **username_4**: @username_3, yeah, Taiwanese like to use 有+verb. Mainlanders perfer verb+过. Nevertheless, both can be clearly understood.  
> **username_4**: 我想了一下，“有看”和“看过”还是略微有些差别的。Scenario：老师交待学生回去要看某本书。第二天，有位学生回答不上来老师提问的关于那本书里的内容。老师问他，“我交待的书你有没有看过？”如果回答“有看过”，那表明很可能只是看了一眼，没有认真阅读。如果回答“我看过。”有点完整看过的意思，如果为了表明自己没有认真看，可以补充一句，“只不过没有好好看。”  
> **username_4**: 用“有”，不一定就是perfect tense。比如“有在看”，就是正在进行时？我也不知道英语里这种情况用什么时态，比如一本书，我最近一直在看，但此时此刻，我没有盯着它在看。  

---

## 5 answers

### Answer by username_5 on 2016-09-19. Score: 3

Yes, you can use 有 to form present perfect tense, consider the following examples:

1. In mainland, people usually don't use 有 (to me it sounds a bit childish and made me think of a little girl.) :

   Michel: 你看过 "Pride and Prejudice" 没? Have you ever read ...

   Emily: (我)看过。 I have read it.
2. In Hong Kong or Taiwan, looks like it's frequently used (I haven't been there but in quite a lot of TV series and variety shows the celebrities often use it, friends from there may correct me if I'm wrong)

   Michel: "你有看(过) 'Pride and Prejudice' 没?"

   Emily: "(我)有看(过)啊，很好看的。" (I have read it.)

Here you can see, since you have used 有, 过 becomes optional.

As for 有 and 过, in order to form a perfect tense you should at least use one, depends on which tone do you want to use from the previous examples.

> **Comments:**
> **username_6**: Except that this looks rather contrived (at least to the language police). The meaning is absolutely the same if 有 is removed.  
> **username_7**: Haha, I live in Hong Kong and I'm studying a Chinese course. It is just now that I found out I misused `有` and `會` (`本班列車不會載客`) in my past ~20 years writing essays.  

---

### Answer by username_8 on 2016-09-21. Score: 2

I believe the question is more complicated than a misuse in Taiwan. In Xinhua dictionary, `有` has a meaning of `yield` or `have happened`.

Consider the short sentence.

> 情况有变化。

It is a rough paraphrase to `情况变了`. `了` is, of course a perfect tense word. So could we also regard `有` here as a perfect tense word too?

Sadly, among linguists there is still controversy upon the issue. I would personally suggest `情况有变化` emits a stronger feeling of `Situations have changed` than `There are changes in situations`.

Consider another phrase

> 有辱师门

What `有` means here? The phrase does manifest a solid meaning of `have shamed masters` instead of `Something exists, which shames masters`.

The only consensus researchers have reached so far is `有` doesn't act as an auxiliary verb. The word is still a transitive verb. So you feel OK when the following word/phrase is both a verb or a noun, or is often regarded as a noun, namely a gerund. But it is weird when conditions are not met.

An idea comes to my mind that we may need a 'perfect tense' scale. From the weakest to the strongest lies `有`, `过` and `了`. Improper combinations of 'past tense' word and the following verb give strange impressions.

Besides, I would remind you `有` is more of an aspect word, rather than a tense word. It only implies perfect, not necessarily present. For instance, `情况有过变化` has a stronger meaning of `Situations had changed.` And sometimes the word's meaning is probably overrided, such as `在这几年里，情况有变化` (`Situations are changing in the past few years.`).

I'm not a professional studying Chinese. Feel free to challenge me if you have different ideas. Finally I'd like to point out language itself is a *evolving* magic, maybe one day today's misuse would become tomorrow's fashion.


---

### Answer by username_9 on 2016-09-20. Score: 2

This is an really interesting question. It is actually a wrong usage in Taiwanese Mandarin. Since we speak a lot of Taiwanese here, the usage of adding 有 in showing past perfect is effected by Taiwanese or which called "Minnan" dialect.

In standard Chinese grammar, for example:
**I have read the book. 我讀過那本書。
---->我有讀過那本書。
Have you had dinner? 吃過飯了嗎？
---->有吃飯了嗎？**

If you get someone who can speak Minnan dialect, it will sound perfectly smooth in Minnan. However, it became an incorrect usage that used by everyone in Taiwan.


---

### Answer by username_10 on 2016-09-22. Score: 1

“我有看过”= “我看过” it means I have read it.
"有" emphasis that have already do something.


---

### Answer by username_11 on 2016-09-18. Score: 0

I'm from southern China. In my experience, 过 is used more to form present perfect tense than 有.

But sometimes people do use 有. It seems more common in Taiwan mandarin, or at least "stereotypical" Taiwan mandarin.


---

