THE PRESENT PERFECT FOR GIVING NEWS

THE PRESENT PERFECT FOR GIVING NEWS

We often use the present perfect to give the first news of something:

Mary has arrived in Italy.

The Queen has appeared on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.

We sometimes continue in the past simple to give more details:

Mary has arrived in Italy.  She emailed me this morning.

The Queen has appeared on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.  She waved to the crowd.

We do not normally use the present perfect with a specific time reference but it is possible if the period of time is not finished:

It rained heavily in several areas of Britain this morning. [It is not morning now and the person is speaking in the afternoon or evening.]

It has rained heavily in several areas of Britain this morning. [It is still morning and it is possible that it will rain again during the morning.]

Choose the correct verb forms in the following sentences:

1.  The Prime Minister and the President had / have had a meeting. They have decided / decided to hold an election.

2.  The Prime Minister and the President had / have had a meeting yesterday.

3.  John Taylor, the MP* for Milltown, died / has died.

4.  John Taylor, the MP for Milltown, died / has died on Saturday.

5.  [You are listening to the news at 7 pm.] It has snowed / snowed in Scotland this evening and several roads are blocked.

6.  It has snowed / snowed in Scotland last night and several roads were blocked.

7.  Wales won / has won the rugby match and the score was / has been 23 - 0.

8.  England lost / has lost the rugby match last week. 

9.  The Queen has opened / opened the new hospital.  A child presented / has presented her with a bouquet.

10. The Queen has opened / opened the new hospital on Tuesday afternoon. A child presented / has presented her with a bouquet.

*MP = Member of Parliament

Highlight the space below to see the answers:

1. have had; decided  2. had  3. has died  4. died  5. has snowed  6. snowed  7. has won; was  8. lost
9. has opened; presented  10. opened; presented.

FAT, PLUMP OR WELL-BUILT?

I give you fair warning - you are about to enter a linguistic danger zone!  As a teacher I get lots of questions about the adjective "fat" and its synonyms so I think it is worth looking at them even though this is a very problematic lexical area!

Big can be innocuous but it can also be offensive as some people will think you mean fat.

Fat is always offensive as it implies that the person is physically unattractive and has no control over their eating habits.  It is also associated with unhealthy eating habits.

Plump is a little less offensive, but not much! It implies that the person is fat but in a more attractive way and the word is associated with the idea of cheerfulness.

Well-built implies that the person has a large body and is tall. Some people might find the term offensive.

Stout is offensive and implies fatness.  We do not think of a tall person when we hear this word.  [One popular Italian publication for young learners of English suggests that it is all right to tell someone they are stout.  I advise you not to try it!]

Stocky implies that the person is both short and fat.  It is offensive.

Chubby implies roundness and that the person is plump in a pleasing way. It is often used when we are talking about babies.

Now here is one last piece of advice for the gentlemen reading this post:  When a lady asks you if a dress makes her look fat, the answer is always, "No"!

SOME "ENCHANTED" GRAMMAR!

This evening we're going to look at the song I used in Monday's post again as the lyrics contain three grammar points that I would like to explain:

Some Enchanted Evening - Lyrics

Some enchanted evening, you may see a stranger,
You may see a stranger across a crowded room,
And somehow you know, you know even then,
That somehow you'll see her again and again.
Some enchanted evening, someone may be laughing,
You may hear her laughing across a crowded room,
And night after night, as strange as it seems,
The sound of her laughter will sing in your dreams.
Who can explain it, who can tell you why?
Fools give you reasons, wise men never try.
Some enchanted evening, when you find your true love,
When you hear her call you across a crowded room,
Then fly to her side and make her your own,
Or all through your life you may dream all alone.
Once you have found her, never let her go,
Once you have found her, never let her go.


- Song by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II


1.  hear her laughing

She will be in the middle of the action of laughing and you will hear this.

    hear her call

You will hear her call from the beginning through to the end of her action.

We often use these structures with the verbs see and hear:

I saw him walking

- He was already walking when I saw him.

I saw him walk

- I saw the whole action.

2.  When you find

     When you hear

This is the present simple after when to express a future action:

I'll do it when I arrive.

When I arrive means I will arrive some time in the future [not "quando arriverò" as in Italian].

3.  Once you have found her

Once here means immediately after or as soon as and we usually use it in this sense with a perfect tense.  In the song and in the examples below the present perfect is used, even though we are referring to future time:

Once you've done your homework, you can go out.

Once you've read these grammar tips, listen to the song again!