The perfect is also used to denote an action that happened sometime in the past; as, I finished my work. As no definite time is specified, this is called the perfect indefinite. It corresponds to the ordinary use of the English past tense.
a. Note carefully the difference between the following tenses:
| I |
was finishing |
my work (imperfect, § 134) |
| I finished my work (perfect indefinite) | ||
| I have finished my work (perfect definite) | ||
When telling a story the Latin uses the perfect indefinite to mark the different forward steps of the narrative, and the imperfect to describe situations and circumstances that attend these steps. If the following sentences were Latin, what tenses would be used?
“Last week I went to Boston. I was trying to find an old friend of mine, but he was out of the city. Yesterday I returned home.”
191. Inflection of the Perfect. We learned in § 186 that any perfect is inflected by adding the endings of the perfect to the perfect stem. The inflection in the four regular conjugations is then as follows:
| Conj. I | Conj. II | Conj. III | Conj. IV | ||
| amāvī | monuī | rēxī | cēpī | audīvī | |
| I have loved I loved or did love |
I have advised I advised or did advise |
I have ruled I ruled or did rule |
I have taken I took or did take |
I have heard I heard or did hear | |
| Perfect Stems | |||||
| amāv- | monu- | rēx- | cēp- | audīv- | |
| Singular | |||||
| 1. | amā´vī | mo´nuī | rē´xī | cē´pī | audī´vī |
| 2. | amāvis´tī | monuis´tī | rēxis´tī | cēpis´tī | audīvis´tī |
| 3. | amā´vit | mo´nuit | rē´xit | cē´pit | audī´vit |
| Plural | |||||
| 1. | amā´vimus | monu´imus | rē´ximus | cē´pimus | audī´vimus |
| 2. | amāvis´tis | monuis´tis | rēxis´tis | cēpis´tis | audīvis´tis |
| 3. | amāvē´runt or amāvē´re |
monuē´runt or monuē´re |
rēxē´runt or rēxē´re |
cēpē´runt or cēpē´re |
audīvē´runt or audīvē´re |
