0
Anonymous Posted 14 years ago
Grammar
Past perfect: continued up to the time or not?
Hi. Please help. I think it is correct to say the past perfect tense is the past of the past and present perfect tenses.
I met a person who had been a contractor. -- Would you say this is ambiguous as to whether the person was a contractor up to the time of meeting or was a contractor for whatever duration of time some time in the past?
I met a person who had been a contractor before. -- I am not sure but I think by putting the word "before," it makes clear it meant to say that the person was contractor for some time before the meeting and had not continued up to the time of meeting.
So for this kind of situations, would you say it is to add some word like "before" or another time word/phrase, or rewrite the sentence to make it clear? Thank you in advance.
I met a person who had been a contractor. -- Would you say this is ambiguous as to whether the person was a contractor up to the time of meeting or was a contractor for whatever duration of time some time in the past?
I met a person who had been a contractor before. -- I am not sure but I think by putting the word "before," it makes clear it meant to say that the person was contractor for some time before the meeting and had not continued up to the time of meeting.
So for this kind of situations, would you say it is to add some word like "before" or another time word/phrase, or rewrite the sentence to make it clear? Thank you in advance.
Top answer
I met a person who had been a contractor . -- No; she finished being a contractor before the meeting. ' I met a person who had been a contractor before .
- I met a person who had been a contractor .
- -- No; she finished being a contractor before the meeting.
- ' I met a person who had been a contractor before .
- -- 'Before' helps, yes, but it does not define the time any more than the sentence does without it.
- So for this kind of situations, would you say it is to add some word like "before" or another time word/phrase, or rewrite the sentence to make it clear?
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
3 Answers
0
I met a person who had been a contractor. -- Would you say this is ambiguous as to whether the person was a contractor up to the time of meeting or was a contractor for whatever duration of time some time in the past?-- No; she finished being a contractor before the meeting. If she was still a contractor: 'I met a person who was a contractor.'
I met a person who
I met a person who
00
Hi. Thank you. Let's change one of the example sentences a little bit. Would you say the following sentence denotes his having been sick up to the meeting or having had an experience of being sick some time in the past? I think, even though I am not sure, that the past perfect denotes an action or event that occurred before a certain time in the past like "He stepped forward when he had been asked
00
I met a person who had been sick.
He was sick sometime in the past. When he arrived at the meeting, he was well.
He was sick sometime in the past. When he arrived at the meeting, he was well.
0
Related Questions