have done before; have experience of
Form: verb in plain past + ことがある. Negative: 〜たことがない. Question: 〜たことがありますか — the classic have you ever…?.
Meaning: life experience — you did this at some undefined point in the past and it counts as a thing you've done. Not I did it yesterday; that's just plain past 食べた. This is I have (at some point) eaten it.
Crucial distinction — た vs plain form:
- 食べたことがある = have eaten (at least once in life).
- 食べることがある = there are times when I eat (it) — occasional habit, present tense. Completely different meaning; the tense of the verb before こと flips it.
Nuance: works for genuine experiences worth mentioning. Native speakers avoid it for everyday things — ご飯を食べたことがある I've eaten rice before sounds odd because of course you have. Use for travel, unusual foods, meeting people, rare events.
Politeness: the あります form is polite; ある is casual — the て-form and ことが chunk don't change.
Furigana is above every kanji; the pattern is already filled in.
日本に行ったことがありますか。
Have you ever been to Japan?
寿司を食べたことがある。
I've eaten sushi before.
その映画は見たことがない。
I've never seen that movie.
The same three sentences with the pattern taken back out. Nothing is saved and there is no account: answer with a click, or press 1 to 4.
That is this lesson.