Exercise 38 is designed to test your understanding of the present simple, present continuous, and present perfect tenses in English. Here's a detailed review of each sentence with explanations:
Mark has been in Canada since April.
- Explanation: The present perfect tense "has been" is used here because it indicates that Mark's stay in Canada started in the past (April) and continues up to the present.
Jane is a good friend of mine. I know her very well.
- Explanation: The simple present tense "know" is used here because it describes a general fact or state that is true at all times.
Jane is a good friend of mine. I have known her for a long time.
- Explanation: The present perfect tense "have known" is used here because it emphasizes the duration of the friendship from the past up to the present.
“Sorry I'm late. How long have you been waiting?” “Not long. Only five minutes.”
- Explanation: The present perfect continuous tense "have you been waiting" is used to emphasize the duration of the action (waiting) that started in the past and continues up to the present.
Martin works in a hotel now. He likes his job very much.
- Explanation: The present simple tense "works" is used here because it describes a current, regular job situation.
Linda is reading the newspaper. She has been reading it for two hours.
- Explanation: The present perfect continuous tense "has been reading" is used to emphasize the ongoing nature and duration of the action (reading) that started in the past and continues in the present.
“How long have you lived in this house?” “About ten years.”
- Explanation: The present perfect tense "have you lived" is used to emphasize the duration of living in the house from the past up to the present.
“Is that a new coat?” “No, I have had this coat for a long time.”
- Explanation: The present perfect tense "have had" is used to indicate that the speaker obtained the coat in the past and still has it in the present.
Tom is in Spain at the moment. He has been there for the last three days.
- Explanation: The present simple tense "is" is used to describe Tom's current location. The present perfect tense "has been" is used to indicate that his stay in Spain started in the past (three days ago) and continues up to the present.
These exercises highlight the importance of choosing the correct tense to accurately convey the timing and duration of actions and states in English.