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Chloee Posted 14 years ago
Grammar

HAS BEEN and HAD BEEN

He has been with her for two years.
- Would this sentence mean they are still together?

He had been with her for two years.
- Would this mean they are not together anymore and is this the right tense to express it?

Thank you!
  

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11 Answers
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Chloee He has been with her for two years. Would this sentence mean they are still together? YES, it would indicate that they are still together. He had been with her for two years. Would this mean they are not together anymore YES and is this the right tense to express it?
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@JohnParis
Why is it correct to use past perfect here?
'He had been with her for two years'
Normally the past perfect is used to emphasize that an action had taken place before another action happened. Like:
'Before he got a new job, he had been with her for two years.'
'I noticed, that I had lost my key.'
Thanks,
LS
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You are correct. Normally the past perfect is used to emphasize an action taken place before another.

He had been with her for two years means that they no longer stay together.

Here, They no longer stay together is another action.

May be somebody could explain it more clear.
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The question was not whether it was correct, but whether it meant that the action was finished (that they were no longer together).
I answered the question as it was asked, with this in mind.
He had been with Mary for two years before he started seeing Sue. Clearly, he had been with "her" before he started seeing someone else.
I h
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Yes, you have haha Emotion: smile
So would it be more natural to say 'He was with her for two years' if there is no context given?

Co
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You answered your question. And yes it means that the action was finished. Believe me...do not wait anymore. You already have a better understanding of grammar.
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louiST So, would it be more natural to say 'He was with her for two years' if there is no context given? If there is no context, then it's just a sentence and it is grammatically sound.
Could you please correct these two conversations and tell me if they are right, and if not, why. A: How long were you with Sus
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"He has been with her for two years." means that they're still together.
"He had been with her for two years." means that they were together for a specific period of time, but aren't together now.
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Thank you very much!
One more thing:
And what about this? haha

A: Why were you so sad when I last saw you?
B: Because I had broken up with my girlfriend. We had been together for two years.
LS
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