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Goronsky Posted 11 years ago
Grammar

Tense error – yes or no

tense error?

Applicant Jon Doe responded to the Craigslist ad on Sunday and said he is coming in for an interview today between 4 and 5:30 p.m.

Should "he is" be replaced by "he would" to agree with "responded"?
  

Top answer

You have a good question, but the wrong reason. Should "he is" be replaced by "he would" to agree with "responded"? No.

— Sijay

  • You have a good question, but the wrong reason.
  • Should "he is" be replaced by "he would" to agree with "responded"?
  • No.
  • This sentence has two major clauses, which say that "Jon Doe responded" and "Jon Doe said".
  • They already agree in tense, so no problem there.
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2 Answers
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You have a good question, but the wrong reason.
Should "he is" be replaced by "he would" to agree with "responded"?
No. This sentence has two major clauses, which say that "Jon Doe responded" and "Jon Doe said". They already agree in tense, so no problem there. It might be good to add a comma after Sunday for clarity.

But as for what Jon Doe said about
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goronskyShould "he is" be replaced by "he would" to agree with "responded"?
Not with "coming". That replacement would create "he would coming in".

However, you should replace "he is coming in" with "he would come in" or "he would be coming in" or "he was coming in" if it's after 5:30 today. Before 4 those replacements are possible, but optional.
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