I'm Alice Bryant.

Do you like to travel?

Have you traveled a lot?

If so, you could say something like this.

I have been to a lot of places.

Let's take a closer look at the statement to examine its grammar.

It uses a word form called a past participle.

Past participles have different functions in English.

Ben is the past participle form of the verb be.

The speaker did not say I have went to a lot of places.

That is because the word went is the past tense, not the past participle.

Past participles have three main uses in English.

One of them is to form a perfect verb.

Tenses.

Ah, perfect verb tense is one that puts the word has, have or had before its main verb.

Take a look at the example again.

This is the present perfect tense, which is, have or has plus the past participle.

Knowing the name of this or other verb tenses is not important for today's lesson.

The thing to remember is that all perfect tenses in English use some form of the verb have plus a past participle for more on past participles.

Join us again soon, and that's everyday grammar.

Listen for both.

In the next example, she had studied English before moving to the US The speaker used the past participle, studied as part of the past perfect verb had studied.