Is Gone or Has Gone?

Is Gone or Has Gone?

by Enguroo

He is gone or he has gone— which one is correct? Both? Then what’s the difference? Read on to clarify this once and for all.

I think I’ll go now…

To Be Gone

When you use ‘gone’ with the verb ‘to be,’ it functions as an adjective and has several meanings:

1. (of a thing) used up: The coffee is all gone. We need to buy some.

2. (of a person) away from a place: Samantha is gone now. Can I take a message for her?

3. used to indicate that a particular situation no longer exists (formal language): The days are gone when you could leave your door unlocked at night.

Have/Has Gone

When you use ‘gone’ with the auxiliary ‘have/has,’ it is part of the present perfect construction. We use the present perfect tense when we want to focus on the effect an action has on the present, rather than when the action took place. So, ‘he has gone’ emphasizes that he is still away, which essentially means ‘he is gone’ (see meaning 2 above).

The Meaning of ‘He’s Gone’

Without any context, it is impossible to determine exactly what ‘he’s gone’ means: ‘he is gone’ or ‘he has gone,’ since ‘s can be a contraction of either ‘is’ or ‘has.’ When there is context, there may be cues that help us be more certain. For example:

  1. She’s gone to the store, so she’ll be back later.
  2. He’s gone home for the day, so you won’t find him here.
  3. I called him, but he’s gone out for lunch.

In all the sentences above, we use the present perfect and the contractions for ‘he has’ or ‘she has,’ which are ‘he’s’ and ‘she’s,’ respectively. In sentences 1 and 2, there are clear destinations mentioned: to the store and home. Use the present perfect with ‘gone’ when a destination is specified. In sentence 3, ‘gone’ is part of the phrasal verb ‘go out,’ which also indicates it’s part of a present perfect construction.

Now, consider these sentences:

  1. She’s gone for the day, so we can’t ask her anything.
  2. He’s gone from the office.
  3. You’ll be sorry you said that when I’m dead and gone.

In all the sentences above, we use the adjective ‘gone.’ Note that there is no direction mentioned. From sentence 1, we know how long she is going to be gone—until the end of the day. From sentence 2, we know the place she left—the office. In sentence 3, we have the idiom ‘dead and gone,’ which means dead.

So, when there is a destination/direction, use the present perfect. When there is none, use the adjective.

Practice

Let’s practice now.

Click the link here and sort out the sentences based on whether they use ‘is gone’ or ‘has gone.’

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