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grammar

Posted: Fri Dec 10, 2004 10:59 pm
by han
Hello,

I just want to know the deffernce bettween (I visited Egypt last year
and I have been to Egypt) as i always get confused bettween have been and visited)

Thanks

Present Perfect and Past Simple

Posted: Sat Dec 11, 2004 8:13 pm
by nikita
Hello Han,

The difference between the first and the second sentence is that they are in different tenses, and thus express different concept.

"I visited Egypt last year." has a finished time reference, and therefore we cannot use Present Perfect, we have to use the Past Simple instead.

Here is one more example for you:
"Did you ever go to the theater when you were in Japan?"

Present Perfect always somehow links the past and the present. The use it has here is experience, which mean that the main focus is on the action, and it is not so important when exactly this action took place. Instead, it is very important whether this person has done it or not.

Another example,
"Have you ever ridden a motorbike?"
This sentence means something like "Have you ever ridden a motorbike in your life?"

I hope this helps. If you want to ask more questions, please post them here.

Best regards,

Nikita Kovalyov
http://www.eclecticenglish.com/

explanation in Market Leader

Posted: Mon Dec 13, 2004 6:14 pm
by nikita
Hello again,

Here is one more quite nice explanation from Market Leader Intermediate:
We use the Present Perfect to connect the present to the past. One of the main uses is to show the relevance of a past even in the present.
Example: Calvin Klein has been a leading fashion designer since the mid-1970s.

We use the Past Simple to talk about a finished action at a definite time in the past.
Example: In the past, Calvin Klein took a passive approach to the problem.

I hope it helps.

Nikita Kovalyov
http://www.eclecticenglish.com/