conjugate : to go

Tony Tagada

User since 2008
Posts: 12

20 Aug. 2009

Yes I agree,
Thanks

Tony Tagada

User since 2008
Posts: 12

7 Aug. 2009

In the exercise of the conjugation of "to go" I have a lot of difficulties.
But, in the folowing exercise I don't find the verb "to go" in the correction. Why ? How can you explain that ?

""have been gone" is false; "have been" is correct. We use the present perfect tense to describe an action which happened at an unspecified time before now. The exact time is not important. The phrase 'in the last year' indicates a period of time which is unspecified, (any time from 365 days ago until the present). We often use the present perfect to speak of an experience which occurred some time in the past (I have been to Rome, I have seen that movie before, etc). The present perfect tense is constructed with 'has/have' + past participle."

Thank you

Tony

AhQ ['a: kiu]

User since 2006
Posts: 2715

9 Aug. 2009

That's an odd language, isn't it? They use a verb of state - to be - as a verb of action - to go!
It'd be pointless to change that wretched habbit.
TO BE can be used instead of TO GO or TO COME in some particular conditions.
Rather than saying "I was to Japan last summer", I'd say "I went to Japan last summer."
But I may say I've never been to Japan.
I have come here some years ago - or - I've been here yet.
I've been to Japan lately - or - I've gone to Japan lately.

[C eargerly W]

You might be interested in learning how that wretched habbit set up in the language. Here you are:
Once upon a time, Jean Marron bought a return ticket from SF to NY by the famous Greendog Bus Lines. The outward journey lasted three days or so. As soon as the bus had driven into the New-York Bus Station and as Jean stepped off he could hear the last call for boarding the bus to NY he had booked in SF. Jean headed right on to the departure wharf and boarded the bus.
Three days later as he came back to the Delavigne offices, Polly asked him: Haven't you been to NY?
- Oh yes, I've been IN New-York for a while.
- So you've been TO New-York, Jean.
Jean thought he had to correct his bad American lingo and said to himself "I've been TO NY". He translated it in his native French thinking to himself "J'ai été à NY." That's how French has been infected by the bad habbits of American, and as an fallout it infected a lot of close languages. Maybe yours, reader.

That's an odd language, isn't it? They use a verb of state - to be - as a verb of action - to go! 
 It'd be pointless to change that wretched habbit. 
 TO BE can be used instead of TO GO or TO COME in some particular conditions. 
 Rather than saying "I was to Japan last summer", I'd say "I went to Japan last summer." 
 But I may say I've never been to Japan. 
 I have come here some years ago - or - I've been here yet. 
 I've been to Japan lately - or - I've gone to Japan lately.  
 
 
 [C eargerly W]  
 
 
 You might be interested in learning how that wretched habbit set up in the language. Here you are: 
 Once upon a time, Jean Marron bought a return ticket from SF to NY by the famous Greendog Bus Lines. The outward journey lasted three days or so. As soon as the bus had driven into the New-York Bus Station and as Jean stepped off he could hear the last call for boarding the bus to NY he had booked in SF. Jean headed right on to the departure wharf and boarded the bus. 
 Three days later as he came back to the Delavigne offices, Polly asked him: Haven't you been to NY? 
 - Oh yes, I've been IN New-York for a while. 
 - So you've been TO New-York, Jean. 
 Jean thought he had to correct his bad American lingo and said to himself "I've been TO NY". He translated it in his native French thinking to himself "J'ai été à NY." That's how French has been infected by the bad habbits of American, and as an fallout it infected a lot of close languages. Maybe yours, reader.

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