Had/have never seen

[subhajit123]

Should I use "have never seen" or "had never seen" in the following context?

1- The Fifa world cup is one of the greatest shows on Earth.Of all the world cups organised by Fifa, 2014's world cup is very memorable to me. The goal that Rodriguez scored is my favourite goal. I have/had never seen a goal like that before.

'have/had never done': Which one should I use?

2- Yesterday I visited my friend's party. I sang a song there for the first time. I have/had never done that before.

 

[Tdol]

What would you use?

 

[subhajit123]

What would you use?

In the first sentence I would use the present perfect. And in the second I will definitely use past perfect. But I am not sure about the first sentence because I am talking about a incident that happened a few years ago.Though I am talking about a goal that was scored 3 years ago yet I have not seen any other goal like that from then. What form should I use?

 

[GoesStation]

1- The Fifa world cup is one of the greatest shows on Earth. (Space) Of all the world cups organised by Fifa, 2014's world cup is very memorable to me. The goal that Rodriguez scored is my favourite goal. I have/had never seen a goal like that before.

'have/had never done': Which one should I use?

2- Yesterday I visited my friend's party. I sang a song there for the first time. I have/had never done that before.

In the first sentence I would use the present perfect.:cross: And in the second I will definitely use past perfect.:tick:

Ending the last sentence in number 1 with "before" requires you to use the past perfect.

 

[emsr2d2]

1- The [STRIKE]Fifa[/STRIKE] FIFA World Cup is one of the greatest shows on Earth. (Space after a full stop.) Of all the FIFA World Cups I have watched, [strike]organised by Fifa,[/strike] the 2014 [STRIKE]'s[/STRIKE] [STRIKE]world cup[/STRIKE] competition is [STRIKE]very[/STRIKE] the most memorable [STRIKE]to[/STRIKE] for me. The goal that Rodriguez scored is my favourite goal. I [STRIKE]have/[/STRIKE] had never seen a goal like that before.



2- Yesterday I [STRIKE]visited[/STRIKE] went to my friend's party. I sang a song there. [STRIKE]for the first time.[/STRIKE] I [STRIKE]have/[/STRIKE] had never done that before.

I have made some other corrections and changes above.

In 1:
- it's important to use correct capitalisation for the official name of such competitions.
- You haven't seen every World Cup ever played, so you need to specify that the 2014 competition is the most memorable of those you have seen/watched.
- If the goal that Rodriguez scored is your favourite goal from that year's competition, the version above is OK. If you think it's the best goal you've ever seen, add "ever" after "favourite goal".

In 2:
- We don't "visit" parties. We go to them. (Also, parties are usually held in the evening so I would probably use "Last night", not "Yesterday". However, if the party was held during the day, "Yesterday" is OK. That's why I have left it for now.
- By saying "I had never done that before", you negate the need for "for the first time" in the second sentence.

 

[subhajit123]

I have made some other corrections and changes above.

In 1:
- it's important to use correct capitalisation for the official name of such competitions.
- You haven't seen every World Cup ever played, so you need to specify that the 2014 competition is the most memorable of those you have seen/watched.
- If the goal that Rodriguez scored is your favourite goal from that year's competition, the version above is OK. If you think it's the best goal you've ever seen, add "ever" after "favourite goal".

In 2:
- We don't "visit" parties. We go to them. (Also, parties are usually held in the evening so I would probably use "Last night", not "Yesterday". However, if the party was held during the day, "Yesterday" is OK. That's why I have left it for now.
- By saying "I had never done that before", you negate the need for "for the first time" in the second sentence.

Can you tell me when should I use present perfect in the first sentence? I have never seen a goal like that before: does this tense not fit in the conext? Can you explain why? :-(

 

[GoesStation]

Can you tell me when should I use present perfect in the first sentence? I have never seen a goal like before: does this tense not fit in the conext? Can you explain why? :-(

"Olivetti just smashed the puck right through the net. I've never seen a goal like that before!" The adverb just sets the action in the very near past, so I use the present perfect to relate it to the present.

"Ten years ago, Zinedine Zidane was ejected from the World Cup final when he let an opponent's taunts goad him into violence. I'd never seen anything like it." The past perfect relates the statement to my condition at the time of the action. The Zinedine Zidane headbutt occurred in 2006. I may have seen something like it in 2010, but that's not relevant to my statement.

 

[emsr2d2]

Can you tell me when should I use present perfect in the first sentence? I have never seen a goal like that before: does this tense not fit in the conext? Can you explain why? :-(

I have never seen a goal like the one I saw in 2014. (This means you hadn't seen one before it and you haven't seen one since.)
I hadn't seen a goal like the one I saw in 2014. (This means you hadn't seen a goal like it before 2014 but it doesn't mean you haven't seen a similar/better once since then.)

 

[subhajit123]

I have never seen a goal like the one I saw in 2014. (This means you hadn't seen one before it and you haven't seen one since.)
I hadn't seen a goal like the one I saw in 2014. (This means you hadn't seen a goal like it before 2014 but it doesn't mean you haven't seen a similar/better once since then.)

The FIFA World Cup is one of the greatest shows on Earth. Of all the FIFA World Cups I have watched, the 2014 competition is the most memorable for me. The goal that Rodriguez scored is my favourite goal ever. I have never seen a goal like that before.

Here I want to mean that I hadn't seen a goal like that before and I haven't seen one since then. Can I use the present perfect now?

 

[emsr2d2]

If you want it to mean that, you need to remove "before" at the end and, in this case, add "another" before "goal".

 

[subhajit123]

I have made some other corrections and changes above.

In 1:
- it's important to use correct capitalisation for the official name of such competitions.
- You haven't seen every World Cup ever played, so you need to specify that the 2014 competition is the most memorable of those you have seen/watched.
- If the goal that Rodriguez scored is your favourite goal from that year's competition, the version above is OK. If you think it's the best goal you've ever seen, add "ever" after "favourite goal".

In 2:
- We don't "visit" parties. We go to them. (Also, parties are usually held in the evening so I would probably use "Last night", not "Yesterday". However, if the party was held during the day, "Yesterday" is OK. That's why I have left it for now.
- By saying "I had never done that before", you negate the need for "for the first time" in the second sentence.

So if i add 'ever' after 'favourite goal',does it imply that that goal is the best goal I've ever seen even if I use past perfect tense?

 

[emsr2d2]

Let's take this one step at a time.

Today is August 7th, 2017. If I see a great goal today and say shortly afterwards "That is the best goal I have ever seen", it means I have never seen a better goal.

Today is August 7th, 2017. On July 7th, I saw a great goal. If, today, I say "It was the best goal I had ever seen", it means I had not seen a better goal before
July 7th.

Today is August 7th, 2017. On July 7th, I saw a great goal. If, today, I say "It is the best goal I have ever seen", it means I had not seen a better goal before July 7th and I haven't seen a better goal since July 7th.