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I read some sentences where writers used nouns with has/have/had been.

What exactly does it mean?

Examples:

She has been an able administrator.
Her mother had been an American.
He has been mad at me.

What if I say?

She is an able Administrator.
Her mother was an American.
He is mad at me.

Please explain the difference.

Also when and how to use has/have/had been and is?

Em1
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user4084
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  • **has/have/had + Past Participle** combinations are used to form the Perfect tenses: Present Perfect, Past Perfect, Future Perfect. You might google for "present perfect", "past perfect" if you wish to learn more. – CowperKettle Jan 22 '15 at 10:23
  • This is a very complicated topic. You may also wish to consult our long post on [*What is the perfect, and how should I use it?*](http://ell.stackexchange.com/q/13255/32). – StoneyB on hiatus Jan 22 '15 at 12:13
  • Whole websites are devoted to answering this. [English Club](https://www.englishclub.com/grammar/verb-tenses.htm) is a good place to start. –  Jan 22 '15 at 14:20

1 Answers1

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You should have a look at the conjugation table of to be in a basic grammar:

Tenses I: I am, I was, I will be, I would be

Tenses II: I have been, I had been, I will have been, I would have been

After will/would follows bare infinitive or infinitive perfect.

After have/has/had follows stem form 3: been (past participle).

CowperKettle
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rogermue
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