Results 1 to 5 of 5
Like Tree3Likes
  • 2 Post By bhaisahab
  • 1 Post By emsr2d2

Thread: Are you finished?' versus 'Have you finished?'

  1. #1
    learning54's Avatar
    learning54 is online now Senior Member
    • Member Info
      • Member Type:
      • English Teacher
      • Native Language:
      • Spanish
      • Home Country:
      • Spain
      • Current Location:
      • Spain
    Join Date
    Oct 2011
    Posts
    748
    Teacher

    Default Are you finished?' versus 'Have you finished?'

    Hi Teachers,
    I've read one of the posts here and I have this question:
    Is 'Have you finished? more polite than 'Are you finished'?
    You usually say 'Are you finished?' when you are more impatient and it can be used with your friends. I think it would be impolite to tell a senior person 'Are you finished?' Sounds more demanding and impolite to me. Is that so? Am I completely wrong?

    Thanks in advance

  2. #2
    bhaisahab's Avatar
    bhaisahab is offline Moderator
    • Member Info
      • Member Type:
      • English Teacher
      • Native Language:
      • British English
      • Home Country:
      • England
      • Current Location:
      • England
    Join Date
    Apr 2008
    Posts
    16,159
    Teacher

    Default Re: Are you finished?' versus 'Have you finished?'

    Quote Originally Posted by learning54 View Post
    Hi Teachers,
    I've read one of the posts here and I have this question:
    Is 'Have you finished? more polite than 'Are you finished'?
    You usually say 'Are you finished?' when you are more impatient and it can be used with your friends. I think it would be impolite to tell a senior person 'Are you finished?' Sounds more demanding and impolite to me. Is that so? Am I completely wrong?

    Thanks in advance
    For me, only "have you finished" is correct.
    emsr2d2 and learning54 like this.

  3. #3
    emsr2d2 is online now VIP Member
    • Member Info
      • Member Type:
      • English Teacher
      • Native Language:
      • British English
      • Home Country:
      • UK
      • Current Location:
      • UK
    Join Date
    Jul 2009
    Posts
    9,023
    Teacher

    Default Re: Are you finished?' versus 'Have you finished?'

    Quote Originally Posted by learning54 View Post
    Hi Teachers,
    I've read one of the posts here and I have this question:
    Is 'Have you finished? more polite than 'Are you finished'?
    You usually say 'Are you finished?' when you are more impatient and it can be used with your friends. I think it would be impolite to tell a senior person 'Are you finished?' Sounds more demanding and impolite to me. Is that so? Am I completely wrong?

    Thanks in advance
    I agree with Bhaisahab that "Have you finished?" is the correct term and that can be said both formally and informally.

    I think with either of the phrases, it depends on how you say it. If you approach an older person, or someone who you don't know very well, and who you would generally speak very politely to, it's possible to make the question sound polite simply with your tone of voice or possibly the addition of "Sir" on the end if you are a waiter.

    "Are/Have you finished, Sir?"
    "Yes, thank you."
    "OK, I'll take your plate. Did you enjoy your meal?"
    "Yes, it was delicious, thank you."
    learning54 likes this.

  4. #4
    learning54's Avatar
    learning54 is online now Senior Member
    • Member Info
      • Member Type:
      • English Teacher
      • Native Language:
      • Spanish
      • Home Country:
      • Spain
      • Current Location:
      • Spain
    Join Date
    Oct 2011
    Posts
    748
    Threadstarter / Original Poster
    Teacher

    Default Re: Are you finished?' versus 'Have you finished?'

    Quote Originally Posted by bhaisahab View Post
    For me, only "have you finished" is correct.
    Hi,
    Thank you so much for your answer.

    Best,
    Learning

  5. #5
    learning54's Avatar
    learning54 is online now Senior Member
    • Member Info
      • Member Type:
      • English Teacher
      • Native Language:
      • Spanish
      • Home Country:
      • Spain
      • Current Location:
      • Spain
    Join Date
    Oct 2011
    Posts
    748
    Threadstarter / Original Poster
    Teacher

    Default Re: Are you finished?' versus 'Have you finished?'

    Quote Originally Posted by emsr2d2 View Post
    I agree with Bhaisahab that "Have you finished?" is the correct term and that can be said both formally and informally.

    I think with either of the phrases, it depends on how you say it. If you approach an older person, or someone who you don't know very well, and who you would generally speak very politely to, it's possible to make the question sound polite simply with your tone of voice or possibly the addition of "Sir" on the end if you are a waiter.

    "Are/Have you finished, Sir?"
    "Yes, thank you."
    "OK, I'll take your plate. Did you enjoy your meal?"
    "Yes, it was delicious, thank you."
    Hi,
    Thank you so much for your reply and examples.

    Best,
    Learning
    Last edited by learning54; 26-Dec-2011 at 10:01.

Similar Threads

  1. since he finished ...
    By GUEST2008 in forum Ask a Teacher
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 03-Jul-2011, 16:19
  2. As soon as we finished we will let you know.
    By kampal in forum Ask a Teacher
    Replies: 5
    Last Post: 30-Nov-2010, 11:02
  3. 'Not having finished" or 'Having not finished'?
    By wotcha in forum Ask a Teacher
    Replies: 22
    Last Post: 12-Aug-2010, 02:52
  4. when/if you're finished ?
    By ph2004 in forum Ask a Teacher
    Replies: 18
    Last Post: 15-Nov-2009, 20:05
  5. have finished and are finished?
    By Unregistered in forum Ask a Teacher
    Replies: 21
    Last Post: 12-Dec-2006, 17:26

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  

Search Engine Optimization by vBSEO 3.6.0