What tense is denoted by this construction?

Question

In a technical document, which I have been reading, I am faced with the following sentence:

A name having namespace scope that has not been given internal linkage above has the same linkage as the enclosing namespace [...]

I don't understand what exact time-construction is denoted by the has not been given word-combination. I had been thinking that this construction denotes the present perfect continuous, but it is not true, because the verb is used in the past participle form instead of present participle form.

Answer 1

A name having namespace scope that has not been given internal linkage above has the same linkage as the enclosing namespace [...]

As you understand correctly, has not been given is not in the present perfect continuous. But what is it? Its tense is the present perfect tense, and it is in the "passive voice".

How can we know that a given sentence (or clause) is in the passive voice? The trick is to notice the auxiliary be + past participle.

A few examples might help. Compare the passive voice in these different tenses.

Simple Present: X is (not) given Y.
Simple Past: X was (not) given Y.
Present Perfect: X has (not) been given Y.

As you can see, your example, "... [namespace scope that] has not been given [internal linkage above]" fits the passive voice in the present perfect pattern.