confused with present perfect

[Anonymous]

"I have not seen him since yesterday"

"Can you believe he hasn't eaten anything since day before yesterday?"

yesterday is a specific time, if i use Had instead of have, why is it wrong?

 

[Casiopea]

"I have not seen him since yesterday"

"Can you believe he hasn't eaten anything since the day before yesterday?"

yesterday is a specific time, if i use Had instead of have, why is it wrong?

1. He hasn't eaten since yesterday. (Correct)
=> It's the entire phrasal unit 'since yesterday' that modifies 'hasn't eaten.

2. He hasn't eaten yesterday. (Incorrect)
=> 'yesterday' directly modifies 'has eaten'.

 

[jack]

Walter had been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school.
Walter have been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school.<----how do i know if i need to use "had" or "have"

The man had been waiting to see a doctor for two hours. <--past perfect?
The man has been waiting to see a doctor for two hours. <--present perfect?
So the first sentence means that he is not watiing anymore? and the 2nd sentence means that he is still waiting?

 

[MikeNewYork]

Walter had been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school.
Walter have been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school.<----how do i know if i need to use "had" or "have"

The third person singular of "have" is "has". I have posted some links for you on perfect tenses on another thread.

The man had been waiting to see a doctor for two hours. <--past perfect?
The man has been waiting to see a doctor for two hours. <--present perfect?
So the first sentence means that he is not watiing anymore? and the 2nd sentence means that he is still waiting?

Yes, that is correct. :wink:

 

[milky]

Walter had been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school.
Walter have been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school.<----how do i know if i need to use "had" or "have"

If you want to talk about something that happened before a specific point in the past use "had". Often the thing started and ended before that specific point, but not always-as in your example.


"When he applied for the job in Lima (specific point in the past of the speaker's present),Walter had been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school (before that point).

"At the time I met him (specific point in the past of the speaker's present), Walter had been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school (before that point)."

"At the time I met him (specific point in the past of the speaker's present), Walter hadn't taken Spanish lessons for six months (before that point)."

 

[jack]

"When he applied for the job in Lima (specific point in the past of the speaker's present),Walter had been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school (before that point).

"At the time I met him (specific point in the past of the speaker's present), Walter had been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school (before that point)."

"At the time I met him (specific point in the past of the speaker's present), Walter hadn't taken Spanish lessons for six months (before that point)."

What is the difference in meaning if i say:

"When he have applied for the job in Lima (specific point in the past of the speaker's present),Walter had been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school (before that point).

"When he had applied for the job in Lima (specific point in the past of the speaker's present),Walter had been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school (before that point).

Do i use have or had? why? and how do i know which one to use? and what difference in meaing does it make if i don't use have or had?

 

[Casiopea]

"When he applied for the job in Lima (specific point in the past of the speaker's present),Walter had been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school (before that point).

"At the time I met him (specific point in the past of the speaker's present), Walter had been taking Spanish lessons since he was in high school (before that point)."

"At the time I met him (specific point in the past of the speaker's present), Walter hadn't taken Spanish lessons for six months (before that point)."

What is the difference in meaning if i say:

A. "When he have applied for the job in Lima (specific point in the past of the speaker's present), ....

B. "When he had applied for the job in Lima (specific point in the past of the speaker's present),....

Do i use have or had? why? and how do i know which one to use? and what difference in meaing does it make if i don't use have or had?

A. is incorrect. Try, "When we had done this (Past Perfect =1st event), something else happened after that (Simple Past = 2nd event)."

B. is correct.

Please see the links Mike has kindly posted for you.

 

[jack]

http://grammar.englishclub.com/verb-tenses_past-perfect-continuous.htm

I reallly like those examples they have given me there,
"For example, imagine that you meet Ram at 11am. Ram says to you:

"I am angry (1st event or 2nd? how do i know?). I have been waiting for two hours (1st event or 2nd? how do i know?)."
Later, you tell your friends:

"Ram was angry (1st event or 2nd? how do i know?). He had been waiting for two hours (1st event or 2nd? how do i know?)."




Where can i get more examples similar to this

Do you have any websites where I can read more about using "could" and "can" when asking questions and making sentences?


For my question:
"Where can i get more examples similar to this?"
if i replace can with could, how does it change the meaning? and vice versa?

Here are some rules i have for using would:
'Would' is theoretical, so, as I don't know you, I'd probably use 'would'. 'Will' is not theoretical,so I could use it (in this question) about someone I know. "

"Can't have + past participle is commonly used in British English. We use it when we are sure about the past action. "

These rules doesn't seem like I can apply it to my sentence, how can i determine if i should use "can" or "could"?

 

[Tdol]

Here are some sites lloking at modal verbs:
https://www.usingenglish.com/links/Language_Articles/Linguistics/Modality/
;-)