Common Mistakes : Been

verb

.BAD: I hadn’t been in Scotland before

.GOOD: I hadn’t been to Scotland before

?BAD: Have you ever been in California

?GOOD: Have you ever been to California

been in = been living or staying in

.I’ve been in Paris since the beginning of June

?How long has Wendy been in hospital

been to = gone to and come back from; visited

.I’ve been to Paris three times

.I’ve been to the hospital to see Wendy

.BAD: Last year I’ve been to England for a month

.GOOD: Last year I went to England for a month

.BAD: First of all we’ve been to UCLA to see Ray’s brother

.GOOD: First of all we went to UCLA to see Ray’s brother

When you are talking about a spec& visit or trip that you made in the past, use went to (NOT have been to). Compare

.I’ve been to England and Italy, but I haven’t been to France

.I went to England in 1993 and to Italy in 1994