Different Permutations: Say vs. Said

Question

James:  I am self-employed.A. Kris:  When you say you are self-employed, do you mean you own a business?B. Kris:  When you said you are self-employed, do you mean you own a business?C. Kris:  When you said you are self-employed, did you mean you own a business?D. Kris:  When you said you were self-employed, did you mean you owned a business?E. Kris:  When you said you were self-employed, do you mean you owned a business?1.  Which above do you think are reasonable permutations? and natural?2.  How are the answers in #1 different in meaning?3.  Do we use 'say' when response is given quite soon?4.  Can we use 'said' when response is given both quite soon (two seconds ago) and some time (two hours ago) after hearing the speaker?5.  Can we omit 'When' above and begin with 'You'?

Clive · Accepted Answer

Hi,

James: I am self-employed.

A. Kris: When you say you are self-employed, do you mean you own a business?

B. Kris: When you said you are self-employed, do you mean you own a business?

C. Kris: When you said you are self-employed, did you mean you own a business?

D. Kris: When you said you were self-employed, did you mean you owned a business?

E. Kris: When you said you were self-employed, do you mean you owned a business?

You are asking us to do quite a lot of work here.

Let mejust try to make some quick comments.

1. Which above do you think are reasonable permutations? None are really wrong .

and natural? The most natural thing, in my opinion, would be to omit the first clause entirely. James just mentionedd his self-employment one second ago, so why repeat the statement?

2. How are the answers in #1 different in meaning? In the context you have given, no real difference is intended and the listener is unlikely to start searching for subtle meanings in the statement.

3. Do we use 'say' when response is given quite soon? Very often.

4. Can we use 'said' when response is given both quite soon (two seconds ago) and some time (two hours ago) after hearing the speaker? Yes.

5. Can we omit 'When' above and begin with 'You'? Not unless you put a period after 'self-employed'.

I hope this is of help.

Forgive me if I ask you to say 'please' next time, as we are all volunteers.

Thank you, Clive

Anonymous · Answer

Hi Clive,

Thank you for your response to my questions. I'm sorry I forgot to put 'please' in my original post considering that I have so many questions, but I always do appreciate every help and time you give to us, learners.

CliveThe most natural thing, in my opinion, would be to omit the first clause entirely. James just mentionedd his self-employment one second ago, so why repeat the statement?

I understand this is the most natural, but if the sentences are left unchanged, would you agree that A, C and D, are most natural? A is all in present tense, C emphasizes the statement is true up to now even when said in the past, and D backshifts the sentence to the past. Is this correct?

Thanks in advance for your assistance.

Clive · Answer

Hi,

A. Kris: When you say you are self-employed, do you mean you own a business?

B. Kris: When you said you are self-employed, do you mean you own a business?

C. Kris: When you said you are self-employed, did you mean you own a business?

D. Kris: When you said you were self-employed, did you mean you owned a business?

E. Kris: When you said you were self-employed, do you mean you owned a business?

would you agree that A, C and D, are most natural? A is all in present tense, C emphasizes the statement is true up to now even when said in the past, and D backshifts the sentence to the past. Is this correct?

A - OK

B - is said, not unnatural

C - OK

D - OK

E - a bit of a mess

Clive

Anonymous · Answer

OK, thanks so much, Clive, for the answers.  That was kind of you.

Different Permutations: Say vs. Said

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