When to Use the Present Perfect vs The Past Simple
In today’s blog post we are going to be looking at when to use the present perfect and when to use the past simple. This can be quite confusing for some as we tend to use both tenses to talk about events in the past.
The Past Simple
We use the past simple when we talk about specific events that have happened in the past. Usually you would use the past simple tense when the specific time of the event is important to the story or requested. For example:
- John went to London last year.
- Kate visited Barcelona in March.
- Mary met Mike when she was at school.
The Present Perfect
We use the present perfect when the exact time of the event is unimportant to the story or if the event is unfinished in the present. For example:
- John has been to London twice this year
- Kate has visited Barcelona 10 times.
- Mary and Mike have been friends since they were at school.
I hope that you found this blog post helpful, if you have any questions leave a comment below!
