Which one is correct

[Danial2005]

A:let's hurry,the president is coming!
B:Oh,I am afraid we___________.

a)have missed him
b)had missed him
c)missed him

which one is correct?
please help me solve this problem
many thanks!

[Sidle Jinks]

I would choose (a) - Present Perfect - the event has already taken place, and its result is concerned with the present. That is, now we don't have to hurry, since the president has gone...

Just my opinion
_________________
Factum non fabula

[Alan]

Hi danial2005,

Yes, the correct form in this context is (a) the Present Perfect. It has the sense of We have just missed him. Later the speaker could say: We missed him (Past Simple) or We realised we had missed him (Past Perfect).

Alan
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Guy Fawkes Night for You

[Danial2005]

Hi Sidle Jinks and Alan,
Thank you very much for your explaination!

Danial

[Jamie (K)]

Americans and Canadians will often use "missed" in that kind of quick, excited situation, in colloquial speech. In fact, I think we use the simple past in that kind of immediate situation more than the present perfect.

When we are watching a football game, we might tell someone who has just walked in, "Hey! You missed an exciting goal!"

It violates the rules learned in ESL class, but if we used the present perfect, it would sound just a few minutes too far back in the past to our ears.

But follow the rules in your ESL book and don't argue with your instructor.