Grow up

Question

Could you tell me which one is right between (A) and (B) in the following sentence? Thank you.It's time you [ (A) grew / (B) grow ] up.

Exe · Accepted Answer

B. Grow.

Grew is past tense,

Blue Jay · Answer

I would use grew.
It's time you grew up.

Lucas21c · Answer

As far as I know, the following sentences are correct.

It's time we taught him a lesson.
I think it's time we stopped the madness.

Actually, why I posted this question is to confrim whether 'grow' is also accpetable or not. Could you tell me whether 'grow' is okay?

CalifJim · Answer

lucas21c(A) and (B)

I have heard both "grew" and "grow" in that context, but as far as I know, the recommended form is "grew".

CJ

Anonymous · Answer

Actually, strictly speaking, "grow" is more correct grammatically, because the rest of the sentence is present tense.  But colloquially, "grew" is more often heard.  Both can be used.

Blue Jay · Answer

Well, I'm firmly in the grew camp, and I'm surprised to find any love for grow at all.

Lucas21c · Answer

Should the verb of the sentence be in the subjunctive, or is it just optional? I think which one is right depends on that.

Exe · Answer

Blue JayWell, I'm firmly in the grew camp, and I'm surprised to find any love for grow at all.

I'm not sure why. Both are commonly used.

In my experiences, grow is used more often, but perhaps I am in the minority here or varies by age.

Blue Jay · Answer

Yes, there may be variations in usage.
Still, I did a little research, because I was puzzled about the reason for the past tense here, though I always use it myself. I haven't found a clear, definitive explanation, but I did find these:

("It’s time" from English Grammar Today.) (Quoted in the Cambridge Learners' Dictionary)

We can use the expression it’s time + subject + past verb form to refer to the present moment:
Gosh! It’s almost midnight. It’s time we went home.
Not: ~~It’s time we go home~~.

(Grammering - A guide to English grammar)

IT'S (HIGH) TIME
IT'S (HIGH) TIME + PAST SUBJUNCTIVE
It's (high) time + past subjunctive expresses that something should be done and that it is already a bit late:
It's time you went to bed. You'll have to get up early tomorrow.
It's high time I bought a new pair of jeans.
It's about time this road was completed. They've been working on it for months.

(Edufind)

THE UNREAL PAST
Similarly, when we want to say that now is a suitable moment to do something, either for ourselves or for someone else, we use it's time + past tense.
EXAMPLES
It's time you paid that bill.
It's time I went home.
Don't you think it's time you had a haircut?

Two of these say it's a past tense verb, while one says it's a past subjunctive. They seem to agree that the past version (whichever kind of past it is) is correct.

Grow up

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("It’s time" from English Grammar Today.) (Quoted in the Cambridge Learners' Dictionary)

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