been
been — verb
1. the form of the verb 'be' that follows 'have', 'has', or 'had' in perfect tenses
the form of the verb 'be' that follows 'have', 'has', or 'had' in perfect tenses, used to talk about past actions or states that continue into the present or that happened before another past event.
Nia has been sick with the flu for three days.
present perfect with 'has been' + adjective
Have you ever been inside a real submarine?
The keys had been lost for weeks before Liam found them.
Roya has been waiting at the bus stop since eight o'clock.
The garden has been full of butterflies all summer.
文法句型
have/has/had + been
have/has/had + been + -ing
用法筆記
Frequently used as an auxiliary to form the present perfect continuous (have/has been + -ing) and past perfect passive (had been + past participle). Distinguish from sense 2: this sense does not require 'to' after 'been'.
常見錯誤
2. used with 'have', 'has', or 'had' followed by 'to' to say that someone travelled
used with 'have', 'has', or 'had' followed by 'to' to say that someone travelled to a place and has returned — like saying 'visited' or 'travelled to'.
Diego has never been to South America in his life.
been + to + continent/place for travel experience
Have you been to the new supermarket yet?
Sahil had been to India twice before he turned twenty.
Élise has been to every art museum in Taipei.
Hao and his parents have been to that restaurant many times.
- visited
more formal and specific about the act of seeing a place or person
- travelled to
focuses on the journey, not just the arrival
- gone to
emphasises that the person has not yet returned
文法句型
have/has/had + been + to + place
用法筆記
This sense always requires 'to' before the place. 'Been to' means the person went and came back; compare with 'gone to' (still there). Subject is typically a person or group that can travel.
常見錯誤
3. used to say that a person visited a place or a person and has already left again
used to say that a person visited a place or a person and has already left again.
The plumber has been already — he fixed the leaky pipe.
Has anyone been to see Grandpa this morning?
been + to-infinitive for completed errand/visit
Cole has been round to drop off the borrowed books.
The postman has been and left a parcel on the doorstep.
Nila's cousin had been and gone by the time I arrived.
- visited
slightly more formal, often requires mentioning the person or place visited
- come and gone
explicitly states both arrival and departure
文法句型
have/has/had + been
have/has/had + been + to-infinitive
用法筆記
Common in informal British English in phrases like 'have been and done something'. When the destination is mentioned, use sense 2 ('been to') instead.
常見錯誤
been — noun
1. a strongly-emphasised pronunciation of 'been' (like 'BIN') that is used within A
a strongly-emphasised pronunciation of 'been' (like 'BIN') that is used within African American Vernacular English to tell the listener something took place in the far-off past, or started long ago and is still the case today — this is different from the ordinary past participle of 'be'.
Nia BIN known about the surprise party — she helped plan it.
stressed 'BIN' + past-form verb for remote past
I BIN finished that report months before the deadline.
They BIN living in that house since 1990 — long before I moved here.
Ari BIN tired of the same old excuses from the landlord.
- have long been
closest standard English equivalent but less emphatic about the remote past
文法句型
BIN + verb (present or past form)
BIN + adjective
用法筆記
Pronounced with a long, stressed vowel (like 'BIN' as opposed to the unstressed 'bin' of standard English). This is a grammatical marker unique to AAE/AAL and is not interchangeable with the standard English 'been'. In writing, the emphasis is often shown with italics or CAPS.