The perfect: kam + participle
The perfect = kam in the right person + the participle: kam punuar, ke punuar, ka punuar. It talks about the past as connected to the present: a result or an experience.
Forms
The participle doesn't change. Reflexive verbs (in -em, -hem) form the perfect with jam: jam larë — "I've washed", jam lodhur — "I'm tired", jam martuar — "I'm married".
| person | punoj | lahem |
|---|---|---|
| unë | kam punuar | jam larë |
| ti | ke punuar | je larë |
| ai, ajo | ka punuar | është larë |
| ne | kemi punuar | jemi larë |
| ju | keni punuar | jeni larë |
| ata, ato | kanë punuar | janë larë |
When to use it
A result now: E kam lexuar këtë libër — "I've read this book". Experience — "ever, never": Ke qenë ndonjëherë në Berat? — "Have you ever been to Berat?", Nuk kam ngrënë kurrë byrek — "I've never eaten byrek". But something that is still going on is usually put in the present: Ka dhjetë vjet që jeton në Shqipëri — "He has been living in Albania for ten years".
Perfect or aorist
If a past time is named — dje, vitin e kaluar, në orën nëntë — you usually need the aorist (the simple past): Dje hëngra byrek — "Yesterday I ate byrek". Without an exact time, when the result or the experience matters, use the perfect: Kam ngrënë byrek — "I've had byrek".
Negation and short forms
Nuk and short forms go before kam: Nuk e kam parë — "I haven't seen him", Ia kam dhënë — "I've given it to him".