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LuciferRising Posted 14 years ago
Grammar

Had been [or] was

When I want to say that some girl was beautiful when she was young BUT I didnt know here then so I wasnt there and didnt witness how beautiful she is, how should I say it...

She had been beautiful when she had been young.
or
She was beautiful when she was young.
  

Top answer

She was beautiful when she was young.

— Ivanhr

  • She was beautiful when she was young.
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7 Answers
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She was beautiful when she was young.
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"She was beautiful when she was young" sounds like you did witness her beauty, "She must have been beautiful when she was young" makes it clear that you did not.
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Nahh.. Its like, now I'm holding a photo of Marilyn Monroe and I want to say that she was beautiful when she was young..

You get me?

So how should I say it?

Marilyn had been beautiful when she had been/was young
or
........ was beautiful when she was young.. This one it seems like I was there and witnessed her being beautiful.. it sounds wrong to me..

he
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I think the simple past is ok.

She was beautiful when she was young.
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If you know how she looked like:
She was beautiful when she was young. (In your opinion - You definitely know how she looked like because of a photo - proven)

If you have only heard about her look:
She must have been beautiful when she was young.
(You have only heard this so far, but you don't know if she really is in your opinion)

LS
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LuciferRising....... was beautiful when she was young.. This one it seems like I was there and witnessed her being beautiful.. it sounds wrong to me..
But you are talking about how she looked when she was young, not about where you were when she was young.

You did witness her beauty - in the photo.

It may so
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