What difference? ('Are you finished' vs 'Have you finished')

'Have is more polite, are implies some impatience to me.

Then, what do you think makes such difference?

Hello Taka

1. 'Have you finished?' could be said in any situation:

a) Mother to child eating soup: 'have you finished?'
b) Teacher to student during test: 'have you finished?'
c) Male to female who has been complaining bitterly about the ring of shaving
foam and stubble round the bathroom sink: 'have you finished?'

2. 'Are you finished?', as Nona says

Here's another two cents.

I sense that "Are you finished?" is more everyday English.
"Have you finished?" is a little 'higher class'.

I can imagine "Have you finished?" being said in quite a nasty way. For me it would not be necessary to switch to "Are you finished?" to produce the less polite nuance. Tone of voice could easily convey that in either case.

Just

Hmm. Now you mention it, CJ, trying out the two phrases
in different accents does give different results.

I think my last post needs a question mark above it, pending
more field research...

MrP

I agree that tone of voice makes a difference and either could be polite or impatient in certain circumstances.

I think another difference depends on the actual or implied end of the sentence.

A polite waiter offering to clear plates would say
'Have you finished with these?'not 'Are you finished with these?'.

Mother to eating child.
Have you finished? (your

Thank you, people, but what I'm interested in is not which usage for which situation, but why such difference in nuance between "are finished" and "have finished". Any idea?

I think 'Why?' is always the most difficult question, for anyone in general and often for native speakers of a language in particular.

I wonder if some of the nuancing arises from the grammar. Let me outline how my thoughts are going.

The present perfect 'Have you finished' seems politely to offer me more time, ie the whole past, in which I may have finished. And the active

I suppose we first have to establish whether there's a regional difference.

Googling on 'I am finished' seems to give quite a few examples where the
phrase simply = 'I have finished', e.g. 'if you want me to put the seat down
when I am finished then you should leave the seat up when you are
finished'.

Cf CalifJim's experience of 'are you finished' as 'everyday

Yes, but the original query was about the question form, not the simple statement at all. A question brings another person into the equation, and another attitude.

Anyway, I don't know about anyone else's home, but in mine, if I say to my wife

'if you want me to put the seat down when I am finished then you should leave the seat up when you are finished'

then this c