Had to vs had to have been
I'm hoping you can help me with this. I'm having a hard time understanding the difference between these two structures. Had to be/had to have been
For example, cops while processing a crime scene and theorizing.
The shot had to come/had to have come from the hills somewhere. There had to be/had to have been another shooter.
What is the difference in meaning between these two?Thanks in advance.
Top answer
Ideally, "had to + infinitive" refers to something happening or existing at the time the necessity for it was observed, while "had to have + pp" refers to something happening or existing prior to that time. For example, "There had to be someone else in the room" means that someone else was believed to be in the room at that time, while "There had to have been someone else in the room" means that someone else was believed to have been in the room at some earlier time. However, in reality, people do not always follow these rules, and may use "had to + infinitive" for a prior event or "had to have + pp" for a current event.
- Ideally, "had to + infinitive" refers to something happening or existing at the time the necessity for it was observed, while "had to have + pp" refers to something happening or existing prior to that time.
- For example, "There had to be someone else in the room" means that someone else was believed to be in the room at that time, while "There had to have been someone else in the room" means that someone else was believed to have been in the room at some earlier time.
- However, in reality, people do not always follow these rules, and may use "had to + infinitive" for a prior event or "had to have + pp" for a current event.
- In this case, you have to work out which is meant from the context.
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Ideally, "had to + infinitive" refers to something happening or existing at the time the necessity for it was observed, while "had to have + pp" refers to something happening or existing prior to that time. For example, "There had to be someone else in the room" means that someone else was believed to be in the r
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