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Insano Posted 15 years ago
Grammar

A problem with the passive form ( 'being')

Hello,

I've a problem with the following sentence. I want to describe a general behaviour. Which passive form is a better choice here and why? Could you give me an example when I should use a) and when b) form?

a) Function is called as many times as the number shown on the screen.
b) Function is being called as many times as the number shown on the screen.

Regards,
insano
  

Top answer

a) is simple; b) is continuous. And you need "the" at the beginning. The function is called ...

  • a) is simple; b) is continuous.
  • And you need "the" at the beginning.
  • The function is called ...
  • is better as a general statement.
  • The function is being called ...
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1 Answers
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a) is simple; b) is continuous. And you need "the" at the beginning.


The function is called ... is better as a general statement.

The function is being called ... is better if you are actually watching it call the function at the time you say it.

There is absolutely no difference here from any situation where there is a contrast between a simple and

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