Sunday, December 16, 2018

present perfect - Have lived vs. Have been living



What is the difference between the followings?





A. I have been living here for 5 years.



B. I have lived here for 5 years.




Am I correct that these two represent the same event, but A emphasizes the continuity of living while B simply states a fact that you lived there from 5 years ago to the present?



Is it true that the difference in present perfect and present perfect continuous is whether a speaker intends to emphasize continuity or a fact?


Answer




The difference between your two examples isn’t great, but, depending on context, A might give a slightly stronger impression than B that the speaker will continue to live there.



The difference is more apparent in a pair such as:




I’ve been reading your book.



I’ve read your book.





The first suggests that the speaker is still reading it, whereas the second suggests that the reader has finished it.


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