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Marold Posted 14 years ago
Grammar

Have you always vs. Did you always?

(1) "Have you always wanted to be a famous sportsman?"
(2) "Did you always want to be a famous sportsman?"

What are differences?

Thanks a lot in advance.
  

Top answer

" What are differences? The difference is one of tense: your first example is in the present perfect tense, and the second in the preterite (simple past) tense. They have it in common that in their basic meanings they both express past time meaning; but unlike the preterite, the present perfect (the one with has/ have , as in your example) also expresses some kind of current relevance.

— BillJ

  • " What are differences?
  • The difference is one of tense: your first example is in the present perfect tense, and the second in the preterite (simple past) tense.
  • They have it in common that in their basic meanings they both express past time meaning; but unlike the preterite, the present perfect (the one with has/ have , as in your example) also expresses some kind of current relevance.
  • " In this present perfect example the connection with the present is that the questioner is asking if you still want to be a famous sportsman, so it's not just a question about your aspiration in the past, but whether it still holds true today.
  • " This example is in the preterite tense; it questions your aspiration to be a famous sportsman wholly as it was in the past, not about it today, so no current relevance here.
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1 Answers
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Marold(1) "Have you always wanted to be a famous sportsman?"
(2) "Did you always want to be a famous sportsman?"
What are differences?
The difference is one of tense: your first example is in the present perfect tense, and the second in the preterite (simple past) tense. They have it in common that in their basic meanings they both express past time me
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