Quote:
Originally Posted by riverkid  I'd like to see the stuff from the grammar books, Joham.
We can use either, even when the event has just happened. The present perfect is used for HOT NEWS and for past events that have a importance to now, often called, "current relevance". It can also be used to be more formal/polite.
But, and this is vitally important. It all depends on speaker choice. In the situation that you've presented, the speaker isn't all that concerned about Trevor and his leaving, it's just a simple finished event. |
Hi, Riverkid. As Martin Hewing says in his
ADVANCED GRAMMAR IN USE, when we use the present perfect, it suggests some kind of connection between what happened in the past, and
the present time. To a Chinese learner of English like me, you know, the 'Does' in the sentence 'Does Trevor still work there?' shows the present time. So I would think the first speaker wants to learn about the present situation, and therefore, the listener should use a present perfect. If the listener says 'No, he left', then he is saying 'No, he left, like, two months ago'. But the first speaker doesn't want to know when Trevor left. So I would think he or she wouldn't want this answer of 'No, he left'. Am I right in thinking this?
Thank you very much again.
--No, he left.