0
Anonymous Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
Appropriate Usage of Tense After Line of Sight is Lost
Hello!
My husband and I were travelling in a train when a really tall person walked past us. I said, "Wow, she is so tall!" My husband didn't hear me and asked me to repeat. By then, the lady was out of my sight so I said, "That lady was so tall". Upon hearing this, my husband teased me about why I used was as opposed to is . And I argued that since she was no longer in my line of sight, I had to describe the event in past tense. He disagreed so we decided to look it up. But we've tried to look this up but most of the articles/forums on past tense are pretty basic and don't talk about what needs to be used when we have knowledge of what is currently happening even if the event isn't happening right in from of us.
So I would appreciate it if someone could set us right!
Thanks in advance!
My husband and I were travelling in a train when a really tall person walked past us. I said, "Wow, she is so tall!" My husband didn't hear me and asked me to repeat. By then, the lady was out of my sight so I said, "That lady was so tall". Upon hearing this, my husband teased me about why I used was as opposed to is . And I argued that since she was no longer in my line of sight, I had to describe the event in past tense. He disagreed so we decided to look it up. But we've tried to look this up but most of the articles/forums on past tense are pretty basic and don't talk about what needs to be used when we have knowledge of what is currently happening even if the event isn't happening right in from of us.
So I would appreciate it if someone could set us right!
Thanks in advance!
Top answer
You can use either, but you may have said 'was' because you were repeating the information: You: That lady's so tall! Husband: Huh? Wha?
- You can use either, but you may have said 'was' because you were repeating the information: You: That lady's so tall!
- Husband: Huh?
- Wha?
- You: that lady was so tall!
- The dependent verb ( was ) normally regresses with the main verb ( said ) in reported speech, but if the condition still obtains, some would retain the present tense ( is ).
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
1 Answers
0
You can use either, but you may have said 'was' because you were repeating the information:
You: That lady's so tall!
Husband: Huh? Wha?
You: that lady was so tall!
The dependent verb (was) normally regresses with the main verb (said) in reported speech, but if the condition still obtains, some would retain the present tense (is
You: That lady's so tall!
Husband: Huh? Wha?
You: that lady was so tall!
The dependent verb (was) normally regresses with the main verb (said) in reported speech, but if the condition still obtains, some would retain the present tense (is
0
Related Questions