Daniel Ojeda
1. I hope we didn't keep you waiting for long. 2. I hope we haven't kept you waiting for too long. Which one would be more natural in North America?
28 lis 2023 08:34
Odpowiedzi · 3
both are pretty common saludos
28 listopada 2023
Both are correct and natural, but they don't mean the same thing. #1 is past tense ("we did"). #2 is present tense ("we have"). The so-called "present perfect tense really and truly is a present tense. It talks about the present, not the past. "We have kept you waiting" means "We, right now, at this very moment, have the experience of keeping you waiting". In a situation where you meet a friend who has been waiting impatiently at a restaurant for your arrival, it does not matter whether you use #1 or #2. Though the meanings are different, the difference makes little difference! However, if you are talking about an event that happened yesterday, you need to use #1. If you are talking about the present and want to emphasize the fact that the waiting has continued up to this very moment, you should prefer #2. I imagine, the present perfect works differently in Spanish. I don't know Spanish, but I do know that in Italian the present perfect works differently from English, and I imagine the same difference would exist in Spanish. For example, in Italian you can say "When I was a schoolboy I have read that book" which in English is utter nonsense because it would combine the past and the present in one thought. In English, you need to say "When I was a schoolboy I read (past tense) that book". The difference is that in Italian, the present perfect is a real tense, whereas in English it is not. In Italian, in "I have read" the word "have" dissolves away and becomes part of a new verb form with its own identity "have read". The word "have" loses its identity in Italian and becomes a mere "helping verb". English is different. The word "have" does not dissolve away and lose its original meaning. Is Spanish like Italian in this respect?
28 listopada 2023
I'm sure the second one would be more common in North America.
28 listopada 2023
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