{"id":50426,"date":"2020-05-26T01:15:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-26T01:15:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/127.0.0.1\/aee\/aee-1371-grammar-english-rules-present-perfect-tense\/"},"modified":"2023-04-25T15:41:35","modified_gmt":"2023-04-25T15:41:35","slug":"aee-1371-grammar-english-rules-present-perfect-tense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.allearsenglish.com\/aee-1371-grammar-english-rules-present-perfect-tense\/","title":{"rendered":"AEE 1371: Grammar Shouldn’t Make you Tense Part 4: When Textbook English Grammar Leads you Astray"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"English<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Have you ever considered how much you learn from a textbook?<\/p>\n

Have you ever tried to use some of these lessons in conversation?<\/p>\n

The problem is that sometimes the lessons that you learn in a textbook don\u2019t necessarily work well in conversations in English.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re going to look at such an example, and why you need to learn through other methods such as this, how to have natural conversations.<\/p>\n

Though you may learn grammar lessons in a textbook, you will see why that doesn\u2019t always work well when you want to talk like a native. <\/p>\n

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Learning Beyond The Textbook<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The last episode in our series was about stative verbs<\/a>, and how to use them to sound more native.<\/p>\n

The idea of this was to ensure that you don\u2019t get flagged as a lower level English speaker.<\/p>\n

Today we\u2019re going to talk about one of the first rules English grammar books teach you, and why it may not actually be that important in the long run.<\/p>\n

We\u2019re going to look at how you are taught when to use present perfect or present perfect progressive.<\/a><\/p>\n

More importantly we\u2019re going to learn why you should never learn it in the first place!<\/p>\n

This may sound a bit unusual, but the reality is that you won\u2019t learn many conversational skills from a textbook alone.<\/p>\n

So we\u2019re going to look at what the lesson is from a textbook, and why that isn\u2019t necessarily such practical advice in the first place.<\/p>\n

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Looking At A Very Common Rule<\/strong><\/h3>\n

One of the first rules you may learn from a textbook for present perfect is to describe something in the past that continues to now.<\/p>\n

So a textbook would instruct you to say \u201cI\u2019ve lived here for 5 years\u201d or \u201cI\u2019ve eaten a lot of healthy salads lately.\u201d<\/p>\n

Actually though we use that tense for things that are finished in the past. <\/p>\n

We tend to think of this for actions that you could also use past simple for, but, since we don\u2019t say the time, and the experience is more important, we use present perfect. <\/p>\n

When a native is describing something that started in the past and is still happening now, they would usually choose the present perfect continuous. <\/p>\n

They may say something like \u201cI\u2019ve been living in Arizona for 10 years now.\u201d or \u201cI\u2019ve been eating a lot of healthy salads lately.\u201d<\/p>\n

So you can see that it\u2019s a difference in the way that you say it, but that\u2019s significant in conversation.<\/p>\n

You want to ultimately be able to talk like a native and have meaningful conversations.<\/p>\n

So you want to learn everyday real conversation skills<\/a>, rather than talk like you only learned rules out of a texbook.<\/p>\n

This is why we teach you beyond just a textbook\u2013and this is how you will really learn to speak like natives.<\/p>\n

This can help to take your conversation to another level!<\/p>\n

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Understanding These Basic Grammar Rules<\/strong><\/h3>\n

What are the basic grammar rules for these two tenses that natives actually use in real life?<\/p>\n

Present Perfect Progressive<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

This is an-in progress past action that is likely to continue or to happen again. <\/p>\n

This is formed by combining have\/has + been + verb\/ing so you can see how it comes together.<\/p>\n

You could say something like \u201cHe has been sleeping in all week.\u201d<\/p>\n

Present Perfect<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

This is an action that started in the past at an unknown time or that continues to the present.<\/p>\n

It is formed by combining have\/has + past participle, and so the sentence comes together in this way.<\/p>\n

You might say something like \u201cHe has slept in all week\u201d or \u201cHe\u2019s slept in all week.\u201d<\/p>\n

Both of these are \u201cgrammatically correct\u201d and they come straight from a textbook.<\/p>\n

Yes they work and they are feasible sentences, but would you naturally say sentences in this way?<\/p>\n

You would be more likely to say something like \u201cI\u2019ve been wearing pajamas all week!\u201d <\/p>\n

This flows and works well in a conversation that you might have with somebody.<\/p>\n

You wouldn\u2019t likely use the present perfect version of this and say \u201cI\u2019ve worn pajamas all week\u201d to highlight the recent continuous nature.<\/p>\n

These may seem like simple fixes, but they make all the difference in your conversations.<\/p>\n

If you want to take your English speaking up a level and really speak like the natives, then these are the types of things to focus on. <\/p>\n

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Why Is It Important To Know This?<\/h3>\n

You might ask yourself why this matters anyhow?<\/p>\n

You probably have learned a lot about vocabulary and grammar<\/a>, so why is this so important to know about and use?<\/p>\n

When it comes to speaking a language, it really is all about connection. <\/p>\n

You don\u2019t want to be spending a lot of time memorizing grammar rules from textbooks. <\/p>\n

Though those grammar rules may be important in some ways, they aren\u2019t very helpful when it comes to real life conversations.<\/p>\n

Most natives don\u2019t know these rules, and they certainly don\u2019t practice them in conversations. <\/p>\n

They often use them incorrectly, and they won\u2019t love being corrected if they do. <\/p>\n

This would likely upset a native if you tried to correct them on their grammar usage straight from a texbook!<\/p>\n

It is a huge waste of time to learn grammar in textbooks, especially in this capacity. <\/p>\n

For this type of thing, it will just make you sound formal and non-native, and that can feel cold and distant.<\/p>\n

Grammar rules may have their place, but you want to focus on natural conversations first and foremost. <\/p>\n

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Roleplay and Questions To Help<\/strong><\/h3>\n

In this roleplay consider that you just met at a friends house.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re going to ask these types of questions when you first meet someone.<\/p>\n

See how you naturally answer these types of questions, and you will begin to see how this conversation flows. <\/p>\n