Nicht vergessen: Regeln sind Leitlinien – sie sind nur selten absolut.

Present Perfect – State Verbs: Complex States (1–25)

Present Perfect Simple vs. Continuous

Page 4: Inclusion and Measurement

Grammar Explanation

Some verbs describe facts about an object, such as what it is made of or how much it costs. These are states because they don't involve a physical movement or a process with a beginning and an end.

The Rule: Use the Present Perfect Simple for measurements and makeup. You cannot "be costing" or "be containing" something.
Category Common State Verbs
Makeup contain, include, consist of, involve
Value cost, owe, deserve
Connection depend on, matter, resemble
Common Mistake:
❌ This box has been containing old toys for years.
✅ This box has contained old toys for years.
Score: 0 / 25

1. This box ______ these books for years. (State: Inclusion)
a) has contained
b) has been containing [Diese Kiste enthält diese Bücher seit Jahren.]

2. It ______ a lot to fix the car. (State: Cost)
a) has cost
b) has been costing [Es hat viel gekostet, das Auto zu reparieren.]

3. He ______ me money since last month. (State: Value/Owe)
a) has owed
b) has been owing [Er schuldet mir seit letztem Monat Geld.]

4. The team ______ of five people until now. (State: Makeup)
a) has consisted
b) has been consisting [Das Team bestand bis jetzt aus fünf Personen.]

5. Whether we go ______ on the weather. (State: Dependence)
a) has always depended
b) has always been depending [Ob wir gehen, hat schon immer vom Wetter abgehangen.]

6. Your opinion ______ to me since the start. (State: Matter)
a) has mattered
b) has been mattering [Deine Meinung war mir von Anfang an wichtig.]

7. The price ______ lunch for the last week. (State: Inclusion)
a) has included
b) has been including [Der Preis hat in der letzten Woche das Mittagessen beinhaltet.]

8. You ______ a promotion for a long time. (State: Deserve)
a) have deserved
b) have been deserving [Du hast schon lange eine Beförderung verdient.]

9. The bag ______ five kilos since I filled it. (State: Weight)
a) has weighed
b) has been weighing [Die Tasche wiegt fünf Kilo, seit ich sie gefüllt habe.]

10. She ______ her mother more and more lately. (State: Resemble)
a) has resembled
b) has been resembling [Sie hat ihrer Mutter in letzter Zeit immer ähnlicher gesehen.]

11. That mistake ______ us the game. (State: Cost)
a) has cost
b) has been costing [Dieser Fehler hat uns das Spiel gekostet.]

12. The project ______ a lot of hard work. (State: Inclusion/Involve)
a) has involved
b) has been involving [Das Projekt war mit viel harter Arbeit verbunden.]

13. I ______ you an apology for a week. (State: Owe)
a) have owed
b) have been owing [Ich schulde dir seit einer Woche eine Entschuldigung.]

14. It ______ to me how you feel. (State: Matter)
a) has always mattered
b) has always been mattering [Es war mir schon immer wichtig, wie du dich fühlst.]

15. This bottle ______ water for two days. (State: Contain)
a) has contained
b) has been containing [Diese Flasche enthält seit zwei Tagen Wasser.]

16. The results ______ on the final test. (State: Depend)
a) have depended
b) have been depending [Die Ergebnisse haben vom Abschlusstest abgehangen.]

17. He ______ a lot of respect for his bravery. (State: Deserve)
a) has deserved
b) has been deserving [Er hat für seine Tapferkeit viel Respekt verdient.]

18. The show ______ of music and dance. (State: Consist)
a) has consisted
b) has been consisting [Die Show bestand aus Musik und Tanz.]

19. I ______ that library money since last year. (State: Owe)
a) have owed
b) have been owing [Ich schulde dieser Bibliothek seit letztem Jahr Geld.]

20. This task ______ a lot of patience. (State: Involve)
a) has involved
b) has been involving [Diese Aufgabe war mit viel Geduld verbunden.]

21. The dress ______ 100 euros since I saw it. (State: Cost)
a) has cost
b) has been costing [Das Kleid hat 100 Euro gekostet, seit ich es gesehen habe.]

22. Success ______ on your effort. (State: Depend)
a) has always depended
b) has always been depending [Erfolg hat schon immer von deiner Anstrengung abgehangen.]

23. The package ______ all the parts. (State: Include)
a) has included
b) has been including [Das Paket hat alle Teile enthalten.]

24. They ______ a prize for their work. (State: Deserve)
a) have deserved
b) have been deserving [Sie haben einen Preis für ihre Arbeit verdient.]

25. The report ______ ten pages of data. (State: Contain)
a) has contained
b) has been containing [Der Bericht enthielt zehn Seiten Daten.]