He is testing and He has tested

Question

Hi teachers,Would you please tell me when you would use one over the other in these pairs? Thank you.1.a.  He is testing positive for cocaine [~ the results are not back yet? ]1.b.  He has tested positive for cocaine [~ the results are back? ]2.a.  Why hasn't she called?2.b.  Why is she not calling?3.a.  The pipe is not leaking.3b.   The pipe hasn't leaked  [~ Present Perfect is used when you announced that "something has happened", like Ow! I've cut my finger; I've lost my key]Thank youTN

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

tinanam01021.a. He is testing positive for cocaine.

??? Strange sentence. Maybe if he has been tested again and again, for example, every week, and the test comes back positive every time, and you expect him to test positive again as time goes by, you could say this.

tinanam01021.b. He has tested positive for cocaine.

This sounds like he recently had one test and it came back positive, but you can add "twice" or "three times", etc., if you want to specify that this happened more than once.

tinanam01022.a. Why hasn't she called?

She hasn't called. I'm waiting for her to call.

tinanam01022.b. Why is she not calling? (Why isn't she calling?)

a) She hasn't called. (same as above)
b) She's supposed to make calls repeatedly (as if she is at a call center that does political polling, for example), but she is just sitting there staring into space, or she's absent from her usual place. Maybe she's having lunch now, and that's why she's not calling.

tinanam01023.a. The pipe is not leaking.

There is nothing wrong with the pipe. Maybe somebody thinks it's leaking but you've checked and found no leaks, so this is what you tell them. Don't worry. The pipe is not leaking.

tinanam01023b. The pipe hasn't leaked.

This sounds like you have recently fixed a leak or have had a plumber fix the leak. The leak has stopped. The pipe doesn't leak anymore like it used to. Usually you have a 'since' clause: The pipe hasn't leaked since the plumber fixed it last Tuesday.

CJ

He is testing and He has tested

Top answer

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

Related Questions