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Anonymous Posted 16 years ago
Grammar

Expecting

Hello, I was doing some exercises and found this sentence.

Unfortunately, my parents were not expecting me home for a fortnight, and had gone away on holiday.

Why is past progressive used here? Could I also say my parents did not expect me home for a fortnight?

Thank you for the answer
  

Top answer

Anonymous Unfortunately, my parents were not expecting me home for a fortnight, and had gone away on holiday. As is often the case, you may choose either tense. The simple past could suggest the "expecting" occurred at one particular point in time.

— Avangi

  • Anonymous Unfortunately, my parents were not expecting me home for a fortnight, and had gone away on holiday.
  • As is often the case, you may choose either tense.
  • The simple past could suggest the "expecting" occurred at one particular point in time.
  • The progressive tense makes clear that the "expecting" occurred over a period of time.
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2 Answers
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AnonymousUnfortunately, my parents were not expecting me home for a fortnight, and had gone away on holiday.
As is often the case, you may choose either tense.
The simple past could suggest the "expecting" occurred at one particular point in time.
The progressive tense makes clear that the "expecting" occurred over a period of time.
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