Been to versus gone to
New York
Do you say...
You have been to New York
or
You have gone to New York.
Let's look at the difference between been to and gone to.
Let's start with gone to.
Have gone to and has gone to are used when someone is currently at a place and they have not returned.
The trip has not finished and they are still there.
If i say: They have gone to New York
it means they are still there and haven't returned.
Let's look at been to.
Have been to and has been to are used when someone has visited a place and returned.
The trip has finished.
If i say: They have been to New York
it means they have visited and have returned.
Let's compare been and gone together.
Fred has been to New York many times.
He is not there now.
The trips have finished.
Fred has gone to New York for work.
He'll be back on Friday.
He is in New York now. The trip has not finished.
If you want to ask if someone has visited a place,
you use been to in the question.
Been to means visited.
The question is: Have you been to...?
For example
Have you ever been to South Africa?
We cannot use gone to.
Have you ever been to South Africa? is like saying
Have you ever visited South Africa?
Now compare these questions.
Where has Jack gone?
We use GONE because he hasn't returned.
We want to know where Jack has gone because we can't see him now.
Where has Jack been?
We use BEEN because he has returned.
We are curious about where Jack has been because
he has returned from somewhere and he's covered in scratches.
Notice with these questions, since we used WHERE we did not use TO at the end.
Example sentences with BEEN TO
We've been to the beach twice this year.
Yes, I've been to that restaurant before.
He has been to the dentist and feels much better.
I've just been to the bakery to buy a pie. It's yummy.
Example sentences with GONE TO.
Fiona has just gone to the bank. She'll be back soon.
The children have gone to school.
They're still there. It's quiet here.
She has gone to Paris as an exchange student.
He's just gone to the bakery. I hope he buys me a pie.
Complete these sentences using BEEN TO or GONE TO.
Click pause if you need more time.
1. She's gone to Japan for work. She'll be back on Thursday.
2. I've already been to Thailand twice but i want to go back.
3. You have a nice tan.
Have you been to the beach lately?
4. Mike isn't here.
He has gone to his mother's house.
5. I can't find Mary.
She's gone to the library.
6. I haven't been to Sweden but i hope to go there soon.
7. She has gone to the movies and will be back later.
8. I've just been to the shops so now I have everything we need to cook.
I hope you found this lesson about the difference between been to and gone to useful.
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Have an awesome day!