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Anonymous Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
By the time + Past Continuous?
I've always believed that we should use the Past Peerfect in sentences with by the time. This is quite logical when we assume that by the time means before. It seems, however, that the Past Continuous tense can also be used. How often do you hear sentences like the following?
By the time we arrived at the zoo the monkeys were having their bath.
By the time we arrived at the zoo the monkeys were having their bath.
Top answer
That's fine and common. Past perfect refers to a previous past event that is finished : By the time we arrived at the zoo the monkeys were having their bath (and they are still washing themselves). By the time we arrived at the zoo the monkeys had had their bath (so we missed that sight).
- That's fine and common.
- Past perfect refers to a previous past event that is finished : By the time we arrived at the zoo the monkeys were having their bath (and they are still washing themselves).
- By the time we arrived at the zoo the monkeys had had their bath (so we missed that sight).
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1 Answers
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That's fine and common. Past perfect refers to a previous past event that is finished:
By the time we arrived at the zoo the monkeys were having their bath (and they are still washing themselves).
By the time we arrived at the zoo the monkeys had had their bath (so we missed that sight).
By the time we arrived at the zoo the monkeys were having their bath (and they are still washing themselves).
By the time we arrived at the zoo the monkeys had had their bath (so we missed that sight).
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