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Anonymous Posted 10 years ago
Grammar

ing clause

Hi everyone.
I think the sentense
"Do you know the man writing a letter?" is correct. (The man is writing now.)

But does this sentense make sense?
"Do you know the man having been writing a letter?" (The man WAS writing and he's gone now.)

Thanks for any advice!
  

Top answer

" is correct. You are right. The sentence has a relative clause equivalent, or a reduced clause, as it is also called.

— Cool Breeze

  • " is correct.
  • You are right.
  • The sentence has a relative clause equivalent, or a reduced clause, as it is also called.
  • The present participle (writing) may also refer to the past.
  • Do you know the man (who/that is) writing a letter?
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5 Answers
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AnonymousI think the sentense "Do you know the man writing a letter?" is correct.
You are right. The sentence has a relative clause equivalent, or a reduced clause, as it is also called. The present participle (writing) may also refer to the past.

Do you know the man (who/that is) writing a letter? (now)
Did you know the man (who/
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AnonymousBut does this sentence make sense? "Do you know the man having been writing a letter?" (The man WAS writing and he's gone now.)
No.
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AnonymousBut does this sentense make sense? "Do you know the man having been writing a letter?" (
No.
You can use these forms, though.

The letter having been written, he could go to sleep.
Having written and sent the letter, the man felt an immediate sense of relief.
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AlpheccaStarsThe letter having been written, he could go to sleep.Having written and sent the letter, the man felt an immediate sense of relief.
Yes. For temporal clauses referring to past actions, there are three alternative clause equivalents:

[After] having written the letter, the man felt an immediate sense of relief.
After writing t
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Thank you CB and others.
It helps me a lot.
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