What is the difference between "it is done" and "it was done"??

Question

"it is done" and "it was done" seem to say something has bee finished. Please tell me the difference.ThanksChris

Usenet · Accepted Answer

[nq:1]"it is done" and "it was done" seem to say something has bee finished. Please tell me the difference.[/nq]
Time.
'It is done' refers to something completed recently.

'It was done' refers to something completed some time ago.

Mike
M.J.Powell

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]"it is done" and "it was done" seem to say something has bee finished. Please tell me the difference.[/nq]
One (usually) describes a present condition. The other (usually) talks about an action in the past.
Do you understand the difference between:
"It is painted" and "It was painted"?

Best Donna Richoux

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I know tenses. In this case, 'it is done' means 'it has just been finished' and 'it was done' means 'it was finished several weeks ago'. Isn't it??
Thanks,
Chris

Usenet · Answer

(moved comment to bottom, to preserve order)
[nq:2]One (usually) describes a present condition. The other (usually) talks ... the difference between: "It is painted" and "It was painted"?[/nq]
[nq:1]I know tenses. In this case, 'it is done' means 'it has just been finished' and 'it was done' means 'it was finished several weeks ago'. Isn't it??[/nq]
That's pretty close, and it probably works for most cases. But it's not quite right. I might say that a think "is done" even if the work finished weeks and weeks ago. The point is that it is still done, it is in a condition or state of being finished, completed, ready.

A: Is your guest room still being renovated?
B: Nope, that is done. We finished that six months ago.

I'm told the British don't use that sense of "done" or "all done" meaning "finished."
"Was done" would probably be used in coordination with another verb, such as with "while". It does not necessarily imply a finished condition.
The work was done while I lived in the room next
door. The workmen were always banging and drilling.

The painting was all done so they went home.
If you have a particular sentence where you're not sure if it should be "is done" or "was done," let's see it with some context, so we can tell which one is best.

Best Donna Richoux

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]finished. >> Please tell me the difference.[/nq]
[nq:2]One (usually) describes a present condition. The other (usually) talks ... the difference between: "It is painted" and "It was painted"?[/nq]
[nq:1]I know tenses. In this case, 'it is done' means 'it has just been finished' and 'it was done' means 'it was finished several weeks ago'. Isn't it??[/nq]
Not necessarily. Without context, it's impossible to know what the meaning of these snippets is, but in general the use of the present simple tense says nothing about time at all.

One possible pair of meanings here is:
It is done = It is the practice to do this.
It was done = It used to be the practice to do this.

Provide context for further guidance.

Mark Barratt
Budapest

Usenet · Answer

[nq:1]I know tenses. In this case, 'it is done' means 'it has just been finished' and 'it was done' means 'it was finished several weeks ago'. Isn't it??[/nq]
That depends on the context. If you tell me to fix your shoes and I tell you it is done, that implies I just finished. If you ask me if people fix shoes, I might tell you that it is done in some shoe stores. Since relatively few people have their shoes fixed these days, I might tell you that it was done when I was a child, but is not done very often now.

What is the difference between "it is done" and "it was done"??

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