Meaning
Used to talk about past experience in life. It follows the plain past form of a verb.
Formation
- た form + ことがあります: 行ったことがあります
- Negative: ことがありません; not used for recent events
When to use it
- Core use
- Have done it before
Example
日本へ行ったことがあります
I have been to Japan.
Important notes
- Pay attention to the word form before the construction and to the particles around it.
Common mistakes
- Do not translate the pattern word for word; first identify its function in the whole situation.