we spent vs we have spent

Both phrases are correct, but they're used in different contexts. 'We spent' is used to talk about a specific past action that's completed, while 'We have spent' indicates a past action that has relevance to the present moment. The choice between the two phrases depends on the context and intended meaning.

Explained by Miss E.
Editor at TextRanch

Last updated: March 06, 2025 • 5411 views

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to talk about a specific past action that is completed.

"we spent "

This phrase is used to refer to a past action that happened at a specific point in the past and is already finished. It does not have a direct connection to the present moment.

Examples:

We spent all day at the beach yesterday.
They spent a lot of money on their vacation.
She spent hours working on her project.
He spent his childhood in that small town.
The team spent months preparing for the competition.

Show examples from the web [+]

First, we spent two days lugging provisions.
All the time we spent together.
Except for what we spent on clothes.
So we spent a truckload of cash to send you overseas.
I shall remember the hours that we spent.
But it's not like we spent that much time together.
One day we spent eight hours tracking deer.
I moved out because we spent the last year constantly debating your career versus my expectations of a family.
All the hours that we spent in here.
The time we spent together was very special to...
Such pleasant nights we spent talking of this and that.
This lasagna was supposed to remind our friends of the time we spent together in Bayonne...
I... Maybe it was when we spent the night at the motel together.
If you like toilet wine, we spent the past 20 years perfecting pruno.
I recall we spent a few adventurous nights in this very hotel, Emily.
After that we spent the rest of the night spooning.
So we spent almost two whole days with an ex-convict.
He still thinks we spent the weekend at a spa.
During the decade we spent in a milk bath.
But we spent all day preparing for eminent domain.

Alternatives:

We used up
We consumed
We exhausted
We utilized
We squandered

This phrase is correct and commonly used in English to indicate a past action that has relevance to the present moment.

"we have spent"

This phrase is used to show that a past action has an impact on the present or is still ongoing. It connects the past action to the current situation.

Examples:

We have spent a lot of time on this project.
They have spent all their savings on the house renovation.
She has spent years studying for this exam.
He has spent his whole life working in this industry.
The team has spent weeks preparing for the event.

Show examples from the web [+]

And we have spent every Saturday as family day for the last five years.
I mean, if you think about it, we have spent most of our time together dealing with... beasts.
After the money we have spent on renovations, I...
For the last six years we have spent a lot of energy on institutional issues.
Although we have spent the past few days applauding that this is so, and rejoicing that we have at last reached our destination, we have had, to date, no legally binding statute for Members of the European Parliament, because the Council is blocking it.
For this very reason we have spent long years striving to reach an agreement on establishing a proper internal market in gas and electricity in order to establish true competition and equal conditions for all players in this market.
It means that we have spent the past six months planning a future that you don't even want.
Even when you are not with me, I find myself trying to recall every moment we have spent together.
That is why we have spent the last 15 months negotiating with the United States.
We had to figure out how to lower the radiation dose, and we have spent the last three years making modifications to every aspect of the imaging system to allow this.
I can't believe, with all the time that we have spent together, that you would trust Mike Harness over me.
Within the framework of the LIFE III programme, running since 2000, we have spent more than EUR 950 million on various environmental protection programmes for the successful completion of countless local, regional and cross-border projects.
Today we have spent a lot of time discussing the issue of coercion, and I am wondering whether coercion and education are not contradictory terms.
This year we have spent €45 million;
The fact is that we have, ever since 2003, been working very hard to stabilise Iraq, and we have spent to date EUR 513 million in doing so.
Mr President, we have spent a whole day here in the European Parliament discussing human rights and high ideals, and it is therefore a matter of some shame that, when the Union then acts in the real world, matters look quite different.
It is worth noting that we have spent about EUR 170 million a year on the 80 technical assistance offices which is equivalent to the cost of 800 staff working for the Commission.
To think this man can ruin reputations that we have spent years building with absolutely no evidence.
and we have spent the last three years making modifications to every aspect of the imaging system to allow this.
Yet we have spent only a tiny fraction of the money on ocean exploration that we've spent on space exploration.

Alternatives:

We have used up
We have consumed
We have exhausted
We have utilized
We have squandered

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we spent vs we have spent

"we spent "

"we have spent"

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