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Omar Ahmed Posted 13 years ago
Grammar

a tricky qurstion

Choose the correct answer :
Tom looked tired. Perhaps he…….badly the night before.
a) had slept b) was sleeping c) had been sleeping
I think the correct answer is : c) had been sleeping
What do you think?
  

Top answer

a) had slept This is the most natural. Your choice could be correct in an extended context.

— Philip

  • a) had slept This is the most natural.
  • Your choice could be correct in an extended context.
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8 Answers
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a) had slept This is the most natural. Your choice could be correct in an extended context.
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Thank you very much for your answer. I chose "had been sleeping" because using the Past Perfect Continuous before another action in the past is a good way to show cause and effect.
Examples:
  • Jason was tired because he had been jogging.
  • Sam gained weight because he had been overeating.
  • Betty failed the final test because she had not been attending cla
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Nah. You don't choose how to sleep, so the progressive sounds funny. It's like telling somebody to sleep fast. It works if you mean more than one night, though: Tom was really dragging his tail Friday because he had been sleeping badly all week.
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enoonNah. You don't choose how to sleep, so the progressive sounds funny.
Along the same line, although grammatically acceptable, I don't ever remember anyone saying " I sleep badly last night...". It is just not idimoatic in my opinion.
If one was laying in bed tossing, fluffing pillows and counting sheeps, he was
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grammarfreakAlong the same line, although grammatically acceptable, I don't ever remember anyone saying " I sleep badly last night...". It is just not idimoatic in my opinion.
"Along the same lines, although it might be grammatically acceptable, I don't ever remember anyone saying
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I should have my thinking cap on...my carelessness!
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grammarfreakI should have my thinking cap on...my carelessness!
Most of us are guilty of leaving the thinking cap off from time to time.
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Very kind of you Philip! For as many years as I have used and immersed in American English, I still have to be careful when approaching many of these hidden language land mines. I was being sloppy, and they got me!
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