Tìm Giáo viên Tiếng Anh
Sedna
Perfect Tense vs Simple Tense with word "just"
As I get it from grammar rules with word "just" I have to use the Present Perfect, like example "I've just heard the news", but I've heard from one TV series this line "I just did".
Im confused a bit.
So, do I have to use Present Tense or Simple Tense with word "just" ?
22 Thg 01 2020 22:41
Câu trả lời · 6
1
You need to use a tense that expresses a past action if “just” is used to mean “recently.” It can be simple past or present perfect (which, a bit confusingly, given the name, is a past tense.)
I just did it. Simple past.
I have just done it. Present perfect.
These two mean the same thing.
22 tháng 1 năm 2020
Thank you, Phil, for saving me the trouble of pointing that out!
As Phil has explained, Ed's answer applies to American English. In British English, the adverb 'just' ( as in "I've just heard the news" or "They've just arrived!") is used with the perfect tense, exactly as you were taught, Sedna. It isn't wrong to say "They just arrived!", but it sounds a little odd to the BrEng ear. We're familiar with the 'just'+simple tense from exposure to American English, but most of us would not use it.
NB The same goes for 'yet' and 'already'.
23 tháng 1 năm 2020
This is actually one of the few differences between British and American English grammar. Ed gave the answer for American English. In British English, however, they usually use the present perfect with “just”, and oddly enough, they consider it to be a type of present tense. (Their reasoning is that the sentence describes the present situation.) You may enjoy my popular mini-article on the subject:
https://www.italki.com/discussion/170637
23 tháng 1 năm 2020
Bạn vẫn không tìm thấy được các câu trả lời cho mình?
Hãy viết xuống các câu hỏi của bạn và để cho người bản xứ giúp bạn!
Sedna
Kỹ năng ngôn ngữ
Tiếng Anh, Tiếng E-xtô-ni-a, Tiếng Nga
Ngôn ngữ đang học
Tiếng Anh
Bài viết Bạn Có lẽ Cũng Thích

Speak More Fluently with This Simple Technique
23 lượt thích · 2 Bình luận

How to Read and Understand a Business Contract in English
19 lượt thích · 3 Bình luận

6 Ways italki Can Help You Succeed in Your School Language Classes
15 lượt thích · 8 Bình luận
Thêm bài viết