This is the first time I have been to London

[tufguy]

"I have been to London(means I went to London and came back, I am not in London)". This is what I read in grammar book but there was one more thing.

"Jane: Have you ever been to London?"

"Sue: No, this is the first time I have been to London(she is in London while talking to Jane)."

Does "I have been" have two meanings? I am confused.

Please check.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

"I have been to London [space] (means I went to London and came back, I am not in London)". This is what I read in grammar book, but there was one more thing.

"Jane: Have you ever been to London?"

"Sue: No, this is the first time I have been to London [space] (she is in London while talking to Jane)."

Does "I have been" have two meanings? I am confused.

Please check.

That's a good question.

The "is" pulls the expression "I have been" into the present. One of the grammarians here might be able to explain it.

However, your conversation between Jane and Sue is wrong, so it's hard to answer your question.

If they are both in London, then Jane already knows that Sue is there, so the question would make no sense.

If Jane is in London and Sue is not, then she would not say that she IS in London.

Likewise, if neither is in London, Sue would not say she is.

If Jane had said, "Have you ever been to London BEFORE?" (meaning before this visit), then Sue's answer would make sense. She would be saying that she had not visited in the past.

 

[tufguy]

Yes, I forgot to write "before", sorry. But she says "this is the first time, I have been to London". This is my question. In grammar book it's written that she replies like this "this is the first time I have been to London".

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Yes, I forgot to write "before", sorry. But she says "this is the first time, I have been to London". This is my question. In grammar book it's written that she replies like this "this is the first time I have been to London".

It's fine. It means: "This is my first trip to London." I'll let a grammarian help you disect the verb conjugation.

 

[GoesStation]

It's only correct if you leave out the comma.

 

[jutfrank]

"I have been to London. (means I went to London and came back, I am not in London)".

This is not necessarily true. It is just one possible interpretation of the intended meaning.

"Jane: Have you ever been to London [before]?"

"Sue: No, this is the first time I have been to London."

This shows the use of present perfect quite well. The meaning of the sentence is clear.

"Does "I have been" have two meanings? I am confused.

This question doesn't make sense. I think you misunderstand what 'meaning' is. Look:

• I have been.
• I have been to London.
• This is the first time I have been to London.

These are three different sentences. They all use the present perfect but they each have a different meaning. The meaning is what the speaker wants to say. The third example has a clear meaning, but the second one is not so clear. The first one is even less clear - we need a lot more information about the situation to know what the speaker could mean.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

. . . These are three different sentences. They all use the present perfect but they each have a different meaning. The meaning is what the speaker wants to say. The third example has a clear meaning, but the second one is not so clear. The first one is even less clear - we need a lot more information about the situation to know what the speaker could mean.

I think Tufguy is simply wondering how been can be used in a the present tense.

Tufguy: "Have been" and "had been" show continuing action.

- "I have been watching Tufguy's thread" means that I was watching before and still am now.

- "I had been watching Tufguy's thread" means that I was watching before but am not watching now.​

So you see that "have been" refers to the present and "had been" refers to the past - even though been is past tense when it stands alone.

"This is the first time I have been to London" means that it is probably not the last time. The "continuing action" of visiting London has begun now. She expects to visit again.

 

[jutfrank]

Have been" and "had been" show continuing action.

- "I have been watching Tufguy's thread" means that I was watching before and still am now.

- "I had been watching Tufguy's thread" means that I was watching before but am not watching now.​

Charlie - that's not right. The continuous action is suggested here by the continuous aspect - the watching part, not the have/had been part.​

"This is the first time I have been to London" means that it is probably not the last time. The "continuing action" of visiting London has begun now. She expects to visit again.

We wouldn't know if she intends to visit again. She's just answering a question about her experience.

 

[tufguy]

Sorry, still confused. It is from Raymond Murphy's book. I am not confused about the "been". I am just wondering, why it has two meanings? " I have been to London ( I went to London but came back and it also means this is the first time I have come to London)".

 

[Tdol]

Many things have more than one meaning- it is simply an economical way to use language. Are you saying that nothing in Hindi has more than one meaning, that no form can be used in more than one situation? Some words in English have dozens of meanings and some forms a similar number of uses. It saves us from having to invent endless forms and words for every shade of meaning.

 

[GoesStation]

In isolation, I have been to London probably means that I have visited London at some point in the past and I'm not there now. The phrase's meaning can change if you add context; for example, if I'm in London and chatting with someone, I might say I've been to London six times before. I love London!

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

You are not necessarily watching now, Well - I am. But I wasn't using "now" in the sense of "this second."

Been is not past tense. It is usually part of past-tense constructions. It never stands alone. Thanks - I needed that! As I said to Tufguy, I'll let a grammarian sort the rules of grammar. I just talk about usage.

​

Not necessarily, though that possibility exists. Exactly. The word "first" implies that she doesn't see this as her only trip there.

Got that, Tufguy?

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Charlie - that's not right. The continuous action is suggested here by the continuous aspect - the watching part, not the have/had been part. Thanks, that helps!​

We wouldn't know if she intends to visit again. She's just answering a question about her experience. Yup. What we know is that she doesn't consider this her LAST trip to London.

And - got THAT, Tufguy? Looks like we're both learning about continuous action. So - let's let the action continue! . . .

 

[tufguy]

Okay, so it can be used either way. That is what I have learned Charlie.