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Rpsh Posted 12 years ago
Grammar
had been wanting
The children went to the zoo yesterday. They had (want) to go for a long time.
I think the adverbial 'for a long time' is a kind of continuous state. So my answer is the title, 'had been wanting'. But the answer is 'had wanted'. Why? Is that because 'want' is a transient verb?
Then I have another instance:
I had (ask) here to marry me for three years before we were engaged.
Though, my instinct tell me that the answer is 'had been asking', and so it is. But if I analyze the sentence rationally, I think the answer is inappropriate. Because asking someone to marry is just a transient action. Can you ask some all the time?
I think the adverbial 'for a long time' is a kind of continuous state. So my answer is the title, 'had been wanting'. But the answer is 'had wanted'. Why? Is that because 'want' is a transient verb?
Then I have another instance:
I had (ask) here to marry me for three years before we were engaged.
Though, my instinct tell me that the answer is 'had been asking', and so it is. But if I analyze the sentence rationally, I think the answer is inappropriate. Because asking someone to marry is just a transient action. Can you ask some all the time?
Top answer
In my view, "had wanted" and "had been wanting" are both valid answers and mean near enough the same thing. The continuous tenses of verbs that correspond to discrete actions can describe repetition of the action, which is the case here.
- In my view, "had wanted" and "had been wanting" are both valid answers and mean near enough the same thing.
- The continuous tenses of verbs that correspond to discrete actions can describe repetition of the action, which is the case here.
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5 Answers
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In my view, "had wanted" and "had been wanting" are both valid answers and mean near enough the same thing.
The continuous tenses of verbs that correspond to discrete actions can describe repetition of the action, which is the case here.
The continuous tenses of verbs that correspond to discrete actions can describe repetition of the action, which is the case here.
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GPYThe continuous tenses of verbs that correspond to discrete actions can describe repetition of the action, which is the case here.This comment was in relation to the "marry me" sentence. Sorry, I forgot to make that clear.
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Yeah, my first impulse of the answer is 'have been asking'. So I think the 'child' sentence should have the same form with this sentence. Could you tell me why their answer is different?
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The verb "want" refers to a continuous state. So, for example, you can say "I've wanted to do this for three years". (You can also say "I've been wanting to do this for three years".) Similarly "I've lived here for three years", "I've loved her for three years", "I've felt this way for three years", "She has looked the same for three years", etc. etc.
The verb "ask" refers to a discrete
The verb "ask" refers to a discrete
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