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Pructus Posted 14 years ago
Grammar
Were VS have been
Hi,
Below is an excerpt from a summit meeting.
The underlined "were".
The gramamar book seems to be saying that "have been" is more preferable in this case.
How does this sound to a native's ears?
*** *** ***
I met with President Obama six times over the last three years. Our meetings were always constructive, allowing us to reaffirm the strength of our alliance, an alliance that is firmly based upon shared values and mutual trust.
Below is an excerpt from a summit meeting.
The underlined "were".
The gramamar book seems to be saying that "have been" is more preferable in this case.
How does this sound to a native's ears?
*** *** ***
I met with President Obama six times over the last three years. Our meetings were always constructive, allowing us to reaffirm the strength of our alliance, an alliance that is firmly based upon shared values and mutual trust.
Top answer
This is a quotation (reported) and the speaker chose his words for reasons known only to him. In my opinion, it is not possible to decide whether "were always" or "have always been" is preferable without knowing much more about the context in which the words were spoken. However, to my native ear both versions sound natural.
- This is a quotation (reported) and the speaker chose his words for reasons known only to him.
- In my opinion, it is not possible to decide whether "were always" or "have always been" is preferable without knowing much more about the context in which the words were spoken.
- However, to my native ear both versions sound natural.
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2 Answers
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This is a quotation (reported) and the speaker chose his words for reasons known only to him.
In my opinion, it is not possible to decide whether "were always" or "have always been" is preferable without knowing much more about the context in which the words were spoken.
However, to my native ear both versions sound natural.
In my opinion, it is not possible to decide whether "were always" or "have always been" is preferable without knowing much more about the context in which the words were spoken.
However, to my native ear both versions sound natural.
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