The pharaohs have built great pyramids.
Is it right to use the present perfect in the sentence above because the action happened in the past but the pyramids are still there up to now?
Please choose and explain:
Garaham Bell ........ the phone.
a. invented
b. has invented
Hi, Essam Nasr, and 'Happy Ramadan',
@Essam Nasr posted:The pharaohs have built great pyramids.
Is it right to use the present perfect in the sentence above because the action happened in the past but the pyramids are still there up to now?
Please choose and explain:
Garaham Bell ........ the phone.
a. invented
b. has invented
No, the past simple tense is the one that's normally used in this case. I think you miss the point here. When you mention the pharaohs or Graham Bell, the time frame is already established in the past, especially with verbs that happen only once. It is something that happened a long time ago. You can't say 'Naguib Mahfouz has written many great stories. Many people still enjoy reading them.' Naguib Mahfouz passed away many years ago. However, you can correctly say, "Naguib Mahfouz's stories have influenced a lot of people all over the world since they were published."
