Did You See This?

This is the question that English learners are most frequently asked. But what is the correct answer? The question is ambiguous as it uses both the present perfect and the simple past. More info:https://www.kkforges.com.sg/structural-integrity-inspection

The answer depends on whether or not the thing that you are referring to is still there for you to see now, or has passed into the past and cannot be seen again. If it is the latter, then you should use the question “Did you see this?”, which implies that it would be good to see it again in the future.

Spotlight on Viral Content: Did You See This? Edition

If it is the former, then you should use the question “Have you ever seen this?”, which asks if you saw it before without specifying a time. You can review the difference between these two tenses here:

Another issue is that some people use the word “saw” as a noun, which is incorrect as it only means something that has been cut. You should only say “Did you see this?” if you really did see the piece of wood being cut. Otherwise, it will be interpreted as a grammatical error. If you are learning English, make sure that you get your writing corrected by native speakers! Try HiNative.