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J Lin Posted 13 years ago
Grammar
Do they mean the same
It wouldn't have been the first time.
It wasn't the first time.
It wasn't the first time.
Top answer
No. In the first, 'it' may not have happened. In the second, it did.
- No.
- In the first, 'it' may not have happened.
- In the second, it did.
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6 Answers
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No. In the first, 'it' may not have happened. In the second, it did.
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J LinBut 'it' still happened in the first sentence?As I said, it may not have happened.
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If he had said something really stupid, it wouldn't have been the first time.
He said something really stupid – and it wasn't the first time.
He said something really stupid – and it wasn't the first time.
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J LinBut 'it' still happened in the first sentence?That's neiher known nor the concern of the first sentence, as that sentence only speaks of what would've been true had the 'it' in question happened.
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Just to elaborate a little further, "It wouldn't have been the first time." as a stand-alone sentence suggests that:
- the speaker suspects that "it" did or did not actually happen (e.g. I don't think he said that. But even if he did, it wouldn't have been the first time.)
or
- the speaker knows for a fact that "it" did n
- the speaker suspects that "it" did or did not actually happen (e.g. I don't think he said that. But even if he did, it wouldn't have been the first time.)
or
- the speaker knows for a fact that "it" did n
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