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ESL forum > Grammar and Linguistics > help needed..    

help needed..



Mariethe House
France

help needed..
 
Plesase can someone give me a formal explanation about the difference between the two present perfects: simple and continuous, especially with for and since!I always find it difficult to "explain" .When I find some reasonable explanation, there�s always an exception!
Thank you ! Mariethe.

27 Jan 2009      





nurja
Switzerland

The most simple answer is that the present perfect simple focuses on the finished action
e.g. I�ve washed the floor-don�t walk in, and the continuous focuses on the duration of the action (often long) e.g. I didn�t have time to call, because I�ve been cleaning the floor all morning. So in many cases both tenses are correct, but it depends what the speaker wants to highlight. 

love Nurja

27 Jan 2009     



Mariethe House
France

thank you so much! that sounds pretty easy to remember!

good night!

mariethe

27 Jan 2009