Let’s be honest, sometimes English can be confusing. Sometimes when learning English it is easy to mix up words or be unsure when to use them.
I often hear German speakers who are learning English make mistakes with the words ‘been’ and ‘gone’.
Take a look at the examples below. Hopefully they will make things clearer for you.
Been is the past participle of the verb to be.
Gone is the past participle of the verb to go.
Been is used to describe journeys or trips that are completed. You were there at some point in the past but now you are back.
I have been to London twice.
(You are not in London now. Your journeys to and from London are complete. You are back.)
Gone is used to talk about a situation where the person is still away and has not returned.
My boss is not in the office this week. He has gone to London on a business trip. He’s coming back next week.
(The boss is not here. He is away in London. His journey back has not been completed.)
We use been to ask about and talk about past experiences:
Have you ever been to London?
Yes, I’ve been to London five times.
No, I’ve never been to London.
How long have you been learning English?
I’ve been learning English for six years.
Have you ever been on a business trip to China?
No, I’ve never been on a business trip to China.
Yes, I’ve been on a business trip to China. I went there last year.*
* When we say when something happened we use the past simple tense:
I’ve been to London. I went in March.
I’ve been to China on business. I was there last week.
Have fun learning English!
Louise