When should I use the tense “has been”?

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I’m a non-native speaker but I work for a multinational company so I have to use English 95% of the time at work.

I find myself using has/have been a lot simply because it sounds right to me.

As an I example, I have to report on a status of a task/project. When should I use the below sentences?

• The project is completed.
• The project has been completed.

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10 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

“Is completed” is Present Perfect (*perfectus* just means “complete” or “finished” in Latin). This basically means “at the present time, all is finished.”

“Has been completed” is also Present Perfect, which basically means “this thing is done right now.”

An example of Past Perfect is “had been completed,” which basically means “at this time in the past, it was already done.”

An example of future perfect is “will have been completed,” which basically means “by this time in the future, it’ll be finished.”

In the workplace, there won’t be too much of a meaningful distinction here between those two examples of present perfect, and many native English speakers won’t be able to readily explain this nuance because they have it internalized.

Edit: thanks for the correction u/Mark_Ego

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