0
Ask Questions Posted 10 years ago
Grammar

Past perfect or continuous?

They claimed they --- the law.

were not breaking
hadn't broken

Which one should I prefer to make a grammatically correct sentence?
I think both are fine but I'm not so sure.
  

Top answer

Either would suffice. The first suggests that they are still not breaking the law whereas the second suggests they are only being accused of having broken it in the past. Grammatically, they are both fine.

— David Hatton

  • Either would suffice.
  • The first suggests that they are still not breaking the law whereas the second suggests they are only being accused of having broken it in the past.
  • Grammatically, they are both fine.
Free · every Monday

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.

2 Answers
0
Either would suffice. The first suggests that they are still not breaking the law whereas the second suggests they are only being accused of having broken it in the past.
Grammatically, they are both fine.
0

Related Questions