Over the last year & over the past year
Should I use the Simple Past or the Present Perfect with the time expression "over the last year"?
For instance, which of the two tenses should I use in the sentences below?
1) Over the last year, I saved / I have saved more than 900 dollars.
2) Over the last year, the rate of inflation rose/has risen to almost 7 percent.
3) Over the last year, our company's sales increased/have increased by 85%.
4) Over the last year, Janet developed/has been developing into an excellent pianist.
5) Over the last year, John began/has begun experiencing the early signs of puberty.
Thank you
Top answer
This is a tricky question. I'm a native English speaker in the US, and I had to think long and hard about them, especially 4 and 5. I say that all five given sentences should be simple past - the first of the two choices.
- This is a tricky question.
- I'm a native English speaker in the US, and I had to think long and hard about them, especially 4 and 5.
- I say that all five given sentences should be simple past - the first of the two choices.
- Using the present perfect - the second choice - in any of them would be ungrammatical.
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This is a tricky question. I'm a native English speaker in the US, and I had to think long and hard about them, especially 4 and 5. I say that all five given sentences should be simple past - the first of the two choices. Using the present perfect - the second choice - in any of them would be ungrammatical.
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