Mar 25, 2016 11:45
8 yrs ago
English term
simple vs perfect after as soon as
Non-PRO
English
Other
Other
English Grammar
Is there a good and simple explanation for using the Present Perfect in the first sentence and Present Simple in the second one?
1. Send that letter by courier as soon as you have written it.
2. Tell her to come to my office as soon as she arrives.
Thank you in advance.
1. Send that letter by courier as soon as you have written it.
2. Tell her to come to my office as soon as she arrives.
Thank you in advance.
Responses
| 3 +4 | depends what's happening now |
Sheila Wilson
|
Responses
+4
1 hr
Sheila Wilson
Spain
Spain
Native in English
&
English
Works in field
Spain
20 years producing 100% natural English
Native in: English (Variant: British) 
Works in: English, French to English
Related KudoZ points
:
12
Selected
depends what's happening now
The writing of the letter takes time, and the perfect tenses are used to express that idea. It implies that the letter is already being written or writing will start soon and take some time.
Arriving doesn't take any time at all, however long the journey itself takes. One minute you aren't there; the next you are. In some languages, a future tense will be used. This is clearly logical. But English never uses a future for this type of construction.
Arriving doesn't take any time at all, however long the journey itself takes. One minute you aren't there; the next you are. In some languages, a future tense will be used. This is clearly logical. But English never uses a future for this type of construction.
Peer comment(s):
| agree |
Mark Nathan
: To do something when an action has been completed, vs to do something when an event occurs.
33 mins
|
|
Thanks. That's nice and clear and concise :).
|
|
| agree |
Tina Vonhof (X)
: and with Nathan.
2 hrs
|
|
Thanks
|
|
| agree |
Victoria Britten
2 hrs
|
|
Thanks
|
|
| agree |
acetran
14 hrs
|
|
Thanks
|
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "That's perfectly clear now. Thanks a lot!"
Discussion
In the second example, the action of arriving is not per se the completion of something — rather, the arrival is almost the start of something new. You could equally say 'as soon as she has arrived', but again, it sounds a little odd, as 'arriving' is not the sort of action one completes. Compare this example:
"Phone me as soon as she arrives and has taken off her coat."