Has Been vs Was

Answer 1

It depends on the usage of each one, so for example:

Jon was sick.

Jon has been sick.

The first sentence would usually be used for an action that is finished and with a time phrase that would indicate the past. eg

Jon was sick last week.


Jon has been sick.

This sentence could be used to indicate something that began in the past and still continues and with time markers for

or since

.

Jon has been sick for two weeks/since last week.

Or this sentence could be used to talk about a very recent event. eg

Jon has been sick! (two seconds ago).

Or this sentence could be used to talk about something that has finished in the past but the results are still noticeable. eg

A: Jon looks very pale.
B: Yes, Jon has been sick. (but he is not sick now)

Answer 2

"Has been" is used to indicate that something started in the past and is still continuing. For example, "She has been working here for five years." "Was" is used to indicate something that happened in the past and is no longer continuing. For example, "She was a teacher before she became a nurse."