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Pastsimple Posted 20 years ago
Grammar
An unpractical one
Be warned: this one is a very unpractical and unprobable one.
Imagine this:
Situation#1: I've just come to my office. Michelle is in but Steve is not. I'm looking for him so I ask Michelle: "Have you seen Steve?". Now that was pretty obvious.
It gets complicated:
Situation#2: I've just come to my office. Michelle is in and so is Steve. Steve takes a knife and stabs Michelle, then runs out of the office. I quickly check Michelle - she's OK, she will survive. I run out of the office too, deteremined to pursue and catch Steve. In the corridor, I run into Kelly, my colleague. Should I ask her "Did you see Steve?" or "Have you seen Steve?" My comments: I'm talking about definite past (a few moments ago/just now) and because Kelly has just seen me running and looking angry, she knows something is happening. I would use the past simple, especially if Kelly was upset and I got the impression she'd seen Steve escaping.
P.S. And no, we don't usually stab one another at work.
Imagine this:
Situation#1: I've just come to my office. Michelle is in but Steve is not. I'm looking for him so I ask Michelle: "Have you seen Steve?". Now that was pretty obvious.
It gets complicated:
Situation#2: I've just come to my office. Michelle is in and so is Steve. Steve takes a knife and stabs Michelle, then runs out of the office. I quickly check Michelle - she's OK, she will survive. I run out of the office too, deteremined to pursue and catch Steve. In the corridor, I run into Kelly, my colleague. Should I ask her "Did you see Steve?" or "Have you seen Steve?" My comments: I'm talking about definite past (a few moments ago/just now) and because Kelly has just seen me running and looking angry, she knows something is happening. I would use the past simple, especially if Kelly was upset and I got the impression she'd seen Steve escaping.
P.S. And no, we don't usually stab one another at work.
Top answer
How vivid! You don't care if Kelly saw him three hours ago. You want know know if she saw him a few moments ago.
- How vivid!
- You don't care if Kelly saw him three hours ago.
- You want know know if she saw him a few moments ago.
- Use simple past.
- "
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4 Answers
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How vivid! You don't care if Kelly saw him three hours ago. You want know know if she saw him a few moments ago. Use simple past.
Say to Kelly "Did you just see Steve?"
Say to Kelly "Did you just see Steve?"
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That was rather elaborate. The argument on most other forums is much simpler, namely, what to say to a lunch companion when you both suddenly see a naked man run by!
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CalifJimThat was rather elaborate. The argument on most other forums is much simpler, namely, what to say to a lunch companion when you both suddenly see a naked man run by!
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Yes, focus on an event at a point in time (Did you see ...?) vs. focus on the current state of your conversation partner's list of experiences (Have you seen ...?).
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