Present Perfect Tense in Arabic and English: A comparative Analysis
Abstract
Arabic and English are members of distinct linguistic families. Arabic is a member of the Semitic group. This language has been synthesized. The Indo-European language family includes English. Commonly, it is an analytical and synthetic language. This study delves into an analytical analysis of the forms and usage of the present perfect tense (PPT) in Arabic and English based on the contrastive analysis theory (CA). The study utilized the descriptive-qualitative method to compare and analyze the data in this tense. The data utilized in this study were obtained from both prior and recent research. Based on the analysis, a tensional discrepancy exists between the Arabic and English languages, specifically concerning the present perfect tense. In Arabic, in contrast to English, it employs a variety of particles and adverbials to denote temporal reference. The perfective aspect in Arabic conveys abstract temporal characteristics. The formation of the present perfect tense in Arabic involves the use of the particles /qad or laqad/ before the perfective verb. On the other hand, English present perfect tense is constructed by combining the subject with the auxiliary verb “have” or “has” and the past participle form of the main verb. Finally, the realization of this particular tense in the English language poses a significant challenge due to the absence of a clear translation or equivalent in other linguistic systems, especially Arabic.
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