Identify the tense of the underlined verb in the sentence:
Our school band has won the inter-school music trophy three times in the last five years.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Present perfect tense
Present perfect tense:
- Its form is has / have + past participle (V3).
- It shows past actions joined to the present, often over a period that is still going on.
- “Has won” has “has” and the V3 “won”.
- “In the last five years” is a period that runs up to now.
- Example: Riya has read this novel twice.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 2: Simple past tense — Incorrect.
- The simple past is the past form (V2) alone, as in “won”.
- The underlined verb has the helping verb “has”, so it is not the simple past.
- Example: Our team lost the final last year.
Option 3: Present perfect continuous tense — Incorrect.
- The present perfect continuous is has / have been + V-ing, as in “has been winning”.
- The underlined verb has no “been” and no -ing word.
- Example: She has been singing since morning.
Option 4: Past perfect tense — Incorrect.
- The past perfect is had + V3, as in “had won”.
- The underlined verb begins with “has”, not “had”.
- Example: The guests had eaten before the band arrived.