5 exercises — choosing the right verb aspect (simple, progressive, perfect) in status updates, standups, release notes, and Slack messages.
0 / 5 completed
1 / 5
In a standup Slack message, your team writes: "_____ the new authentication service to staging." Which form is best?
In standup updates that report completed actions, the present perfect ("We have deployed") signals that the action is finished and relevant to the current state. The simple present ("We deploy") describes habitual actions. The present progressive ("We are deploying") signals an action still in progress. When the deployment is complete and you are reporting it, use have + past participle.
2 / 5
A status page reads: "Our engineers _____ the database issue right now. ETA: 30 minutes." Which form correctly signals ongoing work?
The present progressive ("are investigating") is the correct choice because it signals an action happening at this exact moment. The phrase "right now" and the given ETA confirm the action is still in progress. The simple present ("investigate") would sound like a permanent habit. The present perfect ("have investigated") would imply the work is already done, contradicting the ETA.
3 / 5
A release note says: "Version 2.4 _____ support for dark mode, improved API rate limiting, and bug fixes." Which aspect correctly describes features included in this release?
Release notes conventionally use the simple present to describe what a version includes or does. This is called the "release note present" — it describes the state of the software as delivered. "Is adding" implies an ongoing process, which is inappropriate for a finished release. "Has added" is also possible but less common in release-note style. "Adds" is the industry-standard choice for version changelogs.
4 / 5
During a sprint retrospective, the team lead says: "We _____ three major features this sprint." Which form summarises the sprint output?
The present perfect ("have delivered") is used to report the result of a completed activity that has present relevance — perfect for a retrospective looking back at a finished sprint. It connects past actions to the current moment (the end of the sprint). The simple past ("delivered") is also grammatically correct but the present perfect is preferred in British English for recent completed actions with current relevance.
5 / 5
An architecture decision record (ADR) states: "The team _____ PostgreSQL for all new microservices since Q1." Which form correctly shows an ongoing policy started in the past?
The present perfect with a time expression like "since Q1" describes an action or state that began in the past and continues to the present. "Has used" confirms that this practice started in Q1 and is still in effect now. The simple past ("used") would imply the practice has ended. The simple present ("uses") does not convey the historical starting point that "since Q1" requires.