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Anonymous Posted 15 years ago
Grammar

"Could have ate" or "Could have eaten"?

Would it be right to say either,

"We could have ate outside."

or,

"We could have eaten outside."

Could both be right? Please help, and also explain why, if you can.

Thank you very much.

- John
  

Top answer

Hi, Only #2 is correct. The Present Perfect tense uses the auxiliary verb 'have' + the past participle of the main verb. The past participle of the main verb 'eat' is eaten', not 'ate'.

— Clive

  • Hi, Only #2 is correct.
  • The Present Perfect tense uses the auxiliary verb 'have' + the past participle of the main verb.
  • The past participle of the main verb 'eat' is eaten', not 'ate'.
  • Clive
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2 Answers
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Hi,

Only #2 is correct.

The Present Perfect tense uses the auxiliary verb 'have' + the past participle of the main verb. The past participle of the main verb 'eat' is eaten', not 'ate'.

Clive
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What about “we could have ate ice cream” or “we could have eaten ice cream” ? Which one is correct?
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