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Nikoer30127 Posted 15 years ago
Grammar

Is this sentence correct? Pls help me.....

Hi! I want to know is there any mistake in this sentence if I write this way.

The original sentence is, " Inform front desk teachers if there were any absentees." ---by a Canadian

So if I change this sentence to " Inform THE front desk teachers if there ARE any absentees", will it be wrong?

ps. Why can't I use present tense? Because I think there is a possibility of students not showing up. And I know in English, to use past tense instead of using present tense to describe the fact which is not true.

Please tell me why......
  

Top answer

You could add the article the front desk teachers. I assume it has been omitted for the sake of brevity. If the lesson/lecture is over , the past tense (were) seems logical.

— Cool Breeze

  • You could add the article the front desk teachers.
  • I assume it has been omitted for the sake of brevity.
  • If the lesson/lecture is over , the past tense (were) seems logical.
  • CB
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6 Answers
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You could add the article the front desk teachers. I assume it has been omitted for the sake of brevity. If the lesson/lecture is over, the past tense (were) seems logical.

CB
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Thanks for your reply, so u meant what the canadian wrote is wrong?? because teachers have to take a roll call before starting a class. As a result, it should be changed to "Inform the desk teachers if there are any absentees." , this will be logical. Is this what you meant?
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nikoer30127"Inform the desk teachers if there are any absentees."
This is fine when said before the lesson. The past tense is fine if the lesson is over.

CB
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Thank you very much! I understand now!!!:-)
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"Inform the front desk teachers if there was any absentee". "Any" should come with singular person.
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manojdas"Any" should come with singular person.
Wrong. - CB
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