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If an action has just happened, I should use present perfect, right? (At least in BE)

Like: A friend come back and he is sweating, I can reply "What has happened?" right?

And:(fake story :)) If a guy disrespects me, should I say " What have you said to me, right now ?"

ColleenV
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safarie
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    Your first example sounds natural, the second doesn't. If you can't believe he said something so disrespectful, you might ask "What did you just say?" or "What was that you just said?" – Kate Bunting Jul 15 '22 at 14:56
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    Your second example is not idiomatic. Prefer: What did you just say to me? – Ronald Sole Jul 15 '22 at 14:56
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    @KateBunting Could you please explain me why present perfect is not natural in the second sentence? – safarie Jul 17 '22 at 08:58
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    I can't give any explanation other than 'it's not how we say it', I'm afraid. – Kate Bunting Jul 17 '22 at 13:30
  • What's happened/ Or What happened? Can both be used and, once again, this has zero to do with BrE or AmE. – Lambie Jan 21 '23 at 18:24

1 Answers1

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A better way of saying the first would be "What's happened?". It means the same, as "What's" is just an abbreviation of "What has", but a native speaker is more likely to say "What's" rather than "What has".

The second is not idiomatic. It should be along the lines of: "What did you just say to me?" or simply "What'd you say?"

Yash Laddha
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