Tham khảo tài liệu 'the grammar of the english verb phrase part 38', ngoại ngữ, ngữ pháp tiếng anh phục vụ nhu cầu học tập, nghiên cứu và làm việc hiệu quả | 252 5. The absolute use of the present perfect Sentences receiving the up-to-now reading may serve various functions. This means that within the up-to-now reading which is a temporal W-reading we can distinguish several functional types. Each of these functional types represents a use of a present perfect clause which is meant to convey a particular interpretation reading . This means that the terms interpretation or W-interpretation and reading or W-reading will not only be applied to the three temporal W-interpretations W-readings of the present perfect viz. indefinite up-to-now and continuative but also to readings produced by a particular functional use. Within the up-to-now reading we first of all distinguish between the unmarked up-to-now reading and the constitution reading . Within the latter we can distinguish further between a nonquantificational constitution reading and a quantificational constitution reading . A quantificational constitution reading can be either duration-specifying or number-specifying . In the following sections these various categories and subcategories of readings will be defined and examined. The unmarked up-to-now reading This functional version of the up-to-now reading is not concerned with the temporal or situational constitution of the pre-present. In this respect it differs from the functional version which we call the constitution reading see . In At last you re here I ve been trying to get in touch with you for days the second sentence receives an unmarked up-to-now reading i. e. the situation referred to has lasted until right before the moment of speech. Sentences which receive an unmarked up-to-now reading are often used with an explanatory-resultative function. This means that they explain the bygone origin of a present result. For example Sorry I m dirty. I ve been cleaning the cellar. The unmarked up-to-now reading can be defined negatively as being the up-to-now reading which is not concerned .
