This is the first time

Question

When I use "first time" or "third time", do I always use present perfect?

This is the first time I have baked the banana cake.

Is this correct using past tense? This is the first time I baked the banana cake.

Canadian45 · Accepted Answer

flower1234When I use "first time" or "third time", do I always use present perfect? no
for example, if you are talking about the nonrecent past...
That was the first time I have baked a banana cake.
That was the first time I (had) baked a banana cake.

if you baked the cake quite recently.....
This is the first time I (have) baked a banana cake.
Is this correct using simple past tense? This is the first time I baked a banana cake. (same as immediately above)

So you actually don't have to use present perfect, but you can use present perfect if you baked it recently.

This is the first time

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