"I was always interested in" vs. "I has always been interested"
Dear teachers,
Two questions came up to my mind while reading a news article:
(1) Intech was founded in July 2013.
Shouldn't it be written as "Intech was founded in July, 2013." with a comma between Month and Year?
(2) Past Tense vs. Past Perfect Tense
I think "I started making masks because I was always interested in it, especially since the SARS scare." should be changed to "I started making masks because I had been always interested in it, especially since the SARS scare."
It is because Longman Contemporary Dictionary (http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/since) says:
- You use the present perfect before since.
- You also use the past perfect before since.
- You use the simple past tense after since. (Not before)
FYI, related article (http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/program/program_economysmall_detail.htm?no=10068815):
Intech was founded in July 2013 to make general consumer goods based on our molding or injection molding technology. I was not a mask maker at first. I started working in the molding industry as soon as I graduated from high school, and have been ever since. I started making masks because I was always interested in it, especially since the SARS scare. That’s why I decided to try developing a mask using the injection molding technology.
Hope to hear from you soon.
David Kim
Top answer
" with a comma between Month and Year? No. " There is a case that the past perfect is formally superior, but in practice I believe that most people would read the original sentence without noticing any error.
- " with a comma between Month and Year?
- No.
- " There is a case that the past perfect is formally superior, but in practice I believe that most people would read the original sentence without noticing any error.
- Actually, the thing that I notice more is the slight problem with what "it" refers to.
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???Shouldn't it be written as "Intech was founded in July, 2013." with a comma between Month and Year?
No.
???I think "I started making masks because I was always interested in it, especially since the SARS scare." should be changed to "I started making masks because I had been always interested in it, especially since the SARS s
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