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Quora
quora.com › Why-do-people-say-Ive-been-meaning-to-tell-you
Why do people say 'I've been meaning to tell you'? - Quora
Answer (1 of 10): It means that I have been trying to tell you and always wanted to tell you since long before, because in here, the phrase have been, is the present perfect, it refers to the influence of things that happened in the past lasts ...
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/english › is "i've been" grammatically correct in both these sentences considering it has different meanings in each one of them?
r/ENGLISH on Reddit: Is "I've been" grammatically correct in both these sentences considering it has different meanings in each one of them?
October 6, 2023 -

Sentence 1: Great to be back on the TEDx stage. A lot has happened since I've been at TEDx.

When this person said this it was their second time at TEDx, so "I've been" in this sentence is being used to talk about a finished thing. Basically "since I've been" means something like "since the last time I came here at TEDx".

Sentence 2: We've cut taxes about 16 times since I've been in office

Obama said this in 2011, when he was president, so "I've been" is being used to talk about something that started in the past (2009) and was still true when he said that (2011).

Discussions

sentence meaning - "I am been" or "I have been"? - English Language Learners Stack Exchange
It would be very unusual to say "I am been", though. That would mean someone was being you. More on ell.stackexchange.com
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May 7, 2014
I've been meaning | WordReference Forums
I've been meaning to ask you this for some time. Is there anyone else. What is the meaning of the underlined phrase? Thanks in advance! More on forum.wordreference.com
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June 20, 2018
What does I've been meaning to talk to you mean?
Definition of I've been meaning to talk to you It means, "I have been trying to talk to you but couldn't do it till now." Hope this helps!|"I've been meaning to talk to you" means that you have been meaning to talk to someone about a particular topic with them. More on hinative.com
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4
December 21, 2019
What does I've been meaning to tell you something mean?
Definition of I've been meaning to tell you something This is an expression we use when we have something that we have been wanting to tell someone for some time. Here "meaning" basically means "wanting," but perhaps the people haven't met for a while or they have been talking about something ... More on hinative.com
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February 23, 2020
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English Harmony
englishharmony.com › ive-been-meaning-to-never-get-around-to
English Idiomatic Expressions: “I’ve Been Meaning to… Never Get Around to…” | English Harmony
Don’t analyze it at all! Just take it for what it is. It’s a phrase that simply means that you wanted to do something for a long time and just repeat it. “I’ve been meaning to do something. I’ve been meaning to. I’ve been meaning to.” And then it becomes your second nature.
Top answer
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6

It is "have been". It is basically never correct to say "am been", and it wouldn't mean what you want it to mean anyway.

One possible, correct sentence is:

I have been, for a short time, an employee of that company.

Or (this is more natural for me, but arguably less correct):

I have, for a short time, been an employee of that company.

Either way, it means the same. It says that you were employed a short time ago. It doesn't mean you're about to leave. I see why you might want "from" in this case, and not "for", but don't panic: in this case, "for" does not mean that it will only be "for a short time"! Just that it is "a short time" so far.


Now, you said you didn't want a grammatical or technical explanation, so we can stop there. But in case anyone else wants to know the grammar behind it, I'd like to elaborate a bit anyway.

A construction like "have been" is called the present perfect. It is for actions that are past and finished, at this moment. Its structure is have + past participle.

(There is also a past perfect, which is for actions that were already past and finished at some previous time. Its structure is had + past participle.)

A construction like "am being" is called the present continuous. It is for actions that are happening (right now), or that often happen (not necessarily right now, but before now and, we expect, after now too). Its structure is be + present participle.

But "to be" leads a complex existence. It is also used in ways that are basically unrelated to the present continuous.

A construction like "am been" is called the present passive. It is for actions where the subject ("I", in "I am been") is the recipient or target of the action. Its structure is be + past participle. You might say "I am insulted" (someone gave you an insult), or "I am seen" (someone saw you), or "I am blessed" (someone gave you a blessing).

It would be very unusual to say "I am been", though. That would mean someone was being you. If an English speaker really wanted to say that, they would almost certainly use different words.

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“I have been, for a short time, an employee of the company” is a technically correct way to say the you are still working at the company, but started there only recently. I have been is used for an action started in the past, but not yet ended. It would be more natural to say “I have been an employee of the company for a short time”.

“I had been” is used for an action started in the past, carried out for a period of time, then stopped. But “I had been an employee” says you are not longer working there.

“I am been” is wrong. “I am being” is usually used for an action happening at this moment. “I am being employed at the company” would mean that you were, at this moment, starting employment there, or being offered employment there. You’d be more likely to use it with a more active verb, like “I am being chased by a bear!”

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WordReference
forum.wordreference.com › english only › english only
I've been meaning | WordReference Forums
June 20, 2018 - The phrase "I've been meaning" is very common and is sometimes used to disguise what the person has actually been thinking, which could be anything from "I haven't thought about it at all but don't want to give that impression" to "I've been ...
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Quora
quora.com › What-is-the-difference-between-I-have-been-and-Ive-been-in-English-grammar
What is the difference between 'I have been' and 'I've been' in English grammar? - Quora
Answer (1 of 3): There is absolutely no difference. I have been sitting here for two hours now. (You would write this in a more formal text.) I ’ve been sitting here for two hours now. (Informal. This is how you write to a friend or talk.) Contracted forms (“I’m going to…”) are how ...
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Idioms
welling.be › english phrases › i've been
I've been - Meaning & Examples
June 15, 2025 - "Ive been" is the contracted form of "I have been". "I've been" means that an action or event has started in the past and continues up to the present moment.
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WordReference
forum.wordreference.com › english only › english only
I've been meaning to... | WordReference Forums
August 28, 2005 - Do you think that the following examples give a clear idea of the different contexts in which you would say I've been meaning to.. as opposed to I was meaning to...? I haven't called my father in a while. He calls me. Hi,dad. Sorry I haven't been in touch. I've been meaning to call you for the past few weeks but I've been very busy at work I bump into someone I was supposed to call last night but didn't.
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/english › "i've been to..." or "i've been in..."?
r/ENGLISH on Reddit: "I've been to..." Or "I've been in..."?
July 23, 2023 - "I've been in X place " refers to where you are now and how long it has been since you came,as in "I've been in · Rome since Tuesday and so far everything seems perfect " ( meaning you ARE in Rome right now and you arrived 3 days ago)
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Thesaurus.com
thesaurus.com › e › grammar › been-vs-being
“Been” vs. “Being”: What's The Difference?
June 29, 2022 - Been and being are two forms of the verb be. Been is the past participle of be that is used for the present perfect and past perfect verb tenses. Been is also used in combination with other verbs to form the three perfect continuous verb tenses.
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WordReference
forum.wordreference.com › english only › english only
I've been <meaning to do something>
December 7, 2014 - (Cambridge dictionary) (Longman dictionary) used especially when you forget to do something or when something does not happen in the way you intended: I’ve been meaning to call you for ages.
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All Ears English
allearsenglish.com › home › aee 1179: have you been meaning to use more natural english?
AEE 1179: Have You Been Meaning to Use More Natural English? | All Ears English Podcast
April 25, 2023 - In this example, it may have meant that they intended to go there but they haven’t yet. It sounds like they want to go, but they haven’t yet made a plan or made it to the desired destination. So this is a phrase that shows intent or that plans are going to be made. This is a common scenario or situation that you may be talking about, and so knowing how to use the phrase “I’ve been meaning to” can be quite useful.
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Cambridge Dictionary
dictionary.cambridge.org › us › dictionary › english › been
BEEN | definition in the Cambridge English Dictionary
BEEN meaning: 1. past participle of be 2. used to mean "visited" or "travelled": 3. used as the past participle…. Learn more.
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YouTube
youtube.com › english with ghassan
I have been meaning to do something expression in English with examples. - YouTube
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Published   November 22, 2017
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Penguin Random House
penguinrandomhouse.ca › books › 574598 › ive-been-meaning-to-tell-you-by-david-chariandy › 9780771018077
I've Been Meaning to Tell You by David Chariandy | Penguin Random House Canada
In the tradition of Ta-Nehisi Coates's Between the World and Me and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Dear Ijeawele, or a Feminist Manifesto in Fifteen Suggestions, acclaimed novelist David Chariandy's latest is an intimate and profoundly beautiful meditation on the politics of race today.