The choice of tenses
Ali was enjoying his weekend at the sports center in Manama. He was playing in a local pool championship. Ali had been playing well for half an hour and 1 won/had won three of the first five games. He put down the glass he 2 was drinking/had been drinking from and was getting ready to pot the black to win the final game when his false teeth dropped out.
It seems to me that all the options are possible. Is it possible?
Top answer
Ticce Ali had been playing well for half an hour and 1 won/had won three of the first five games. He put down the glass he 2 was drinking/had been drinking from and ... Once the first past perfect is used, establishing the time frame, it is fairly customary for writers to continue with the simple past, which will be interpreted by the reader as a continuation of the actions at the time established by the first past perfect.
- Ticce Ali had been playing well for half an hour and 1 won/had won three of the first five games.
- He put down the glass he 2 was drinking/had been drinking from and ...
- Once the first past perfect is used, establishing the time frame, it is fairly customary for writers to continue with the simple past, which will be interpreted by the reader as a continuation of the actions at the time established by the first past perfect.
- This avoids the constant repetition of 'had', 'had', 'had'.
- Ticce It seems to me that all the options are possible.
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TicceAli had been playing well for half an hour and 1 won/had won three of the first five games. He put down the glass he 2 was drinking/had been drinking from and ...
Once the first past perfect is used, establishing the time frame, it is fairly customary for writers to continue with the simple past, which will be interpreted by the reader as
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