i had not been vs I have not been

Both phrases are correct, but they are used in different contexts. 'I had not been' is used to talk about a past event that occurred before another past event, while 'I have not been' is used to talk about a situation that started in the past and continues up to the present.

Last updated: March 26, 2024 • 2152 views

i had not been

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to talk about a past event that occurred before another past event.

'I had not been' is used to refer to a situation that happened before a specific point in the past. It is often used in past perfect tense constructions.

Examples:

I had not been to Paris before I visited last summer.
She had not been to the new restaurant until last week.
He had not been to the beach since he was a child.

Show examples from the web [+]

If I had not been a lunatic...
Louisa would not have been obstinate, if I had not been weak.
I should've been as though I had not been.
If I had not been forced... to live with her... ...That absorbed all my hours, maybe now would be another.
What if I had not been crowned "miss snow cone" at 16, and moved to the city with my driving instructor?
And if I had not been married at the time...
I'm beginning to think that, if I had not been transferred
Even though I had not been officially invited, you, ladies and gentlemen, asked me to come and I came: I was present and spoke in that debate.
If I had not been taken in by the bays, not known by the bays, and not taken in by you when you turned Emmerson's into the Paradise, I should be a foundling too.
its' an honour to have you with us, sir though I had not been informed that we were carrying a passanger I was delighted to see it was Dr claude belgon controversial biologist from the academy
I had not been told you were also bereaved.
I had not been there since... ...an eternity.
If I had not been in the situation that I was...
She made a series of that I had not been transparent.
And it was very sad for me, because I realized that for those many years I had not been learning.
I would point out that I had not been explicitly forbidden from discussing the case with law enforcement community.
If your film festivals I had not been discovered I would probably be a nobody
And you wonder, is it practical? And it turns out if I had not been - Unfortunately, we have some light bulb changes.
If I had not been born to be King, I would certainly not have wished that fate upon myself.
I put my stuff in the apartment, walked across the street to the pay phone to call my mom to assure her that, yes, I was in Washington, DC, but no, I had not been killed yet.

Alternatives:

I had never been
I hadn't been
I had not visited
I had not gone

I have not been

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to talk about a situation that started in the past and continues up to the present.

'I have not been' is used to refer to a situation that began in the past and is still true in the present. It is often used in present perfect tense constructions.