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Matfever Posted 14 years ago
Grammar
USED TO BE/HAVE BEEN
When Peter was a child, there____a big tree near his house.
A. used to be
B. used to have been
I choose A. but I don't know how to explain
A. used to be
B. used to have been
I choose A. but I don't know how to explain
Top answer
I say neither. When Peter was a child already carries the "used to" connotation. Use one or the other.
- I say neither.
- When Peter was a child already carries the "used to" connotation.
- Use one or the other.
- When Peter was a child, there was a big tree near his house.
- There used to be a big tree near Peter's house.
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3 Answers
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I say neither. When Peter was a child already carries the "used to" connotation. Use one or the other.
When Peter was a child, there was a big tree near his house.
There used to be a big tree near Peter's house.
When Peter was a child, there was a big tree near his house.
There used to be a big tree near Peter's house.
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manhthieugia95I choose A. but I don't know how to explainYou chose correctly. It's a matter of choosing the correct idiom for expressing the idea of a habit or state in the past.
'used to have been' is never used to mean 'used to be'.
CJ
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I can't think of any use for "used to have been" as a grammatical unit.
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