Dave's ESL Cafe's Student Discussion Forums

[hela]

Dear teachers,

Is the following stce referring to a present action taking place at the moment of speaking or is it referring to a past event?

“How long have they waited for the doctor ?”
“They’ve waited for him for two hours."

i.e. Are they still waiting or have they got back home?

Many thanks,
Hela

[bud]

Most likely - They're still waiting. The waiting began two hours ago.

Note that it would more likely be phrased a little differently. This way makes it absolutely clear that we are talking about right now:

�How long have they been waiting for the doctor?�
�They�ve been waiting for him for two hours."

A possibility with the original is that the question is asking, in all their visits to the doctor (with future visits assumed), what is the most time they have ever spent waiting.

Hope that helps!

[hela]

Dear Bud,

Thank you very much for answering. Yes that helps.

Best regards,
Hela

[bud]

My pleasure. Glad it helped.

[LucentShade]

One general rule that you can apply to the present perfect--it often refers to situations that started in the past but continue to have an effect on the present.