What is/was the name of the...+relative clause

Question

Hi all,When do we say what is the name of the… and  what was the name of the... This is very confusing.    1)      What is the name of the person who phoned you? or  what was the name of the person who phoned you?    2) What is the name of the horse that won the race? or    What was the name of the horse that won the race?    3) What is the name of the hotel that you told me about? or What was the name of the hotel that you told me about?4) What is the name of the man whose car you borrowed? or    What was the name of the man whose car you borrowed?       5) What is the name of the person to whom you spoke on the phone? or What was the name of the person to whom you spoke on the phone?Thank you

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

goatWhen do we say what is ... what was ...?

It doesn't matter. You can say either one.

Sometimes people use the present (What is ...?) when they ask for the first time, and they use the past (What was ...?) when they have forgotten and need to ask again later, but you don't need to follow this practice. Either way is grammatical.

But note also that people don't often ask What is the name of ...? when they ask the identity of a person because they can more easily ask Who ...?

What is the name of the person who phoned you?< less commonly said

Who phoned you? < more commonly said

CJ

Goat · Answer

Thanks very much, CalifJim

Khoff · Answer

I think the only time I would ask, "What is/was the name of the person who phoned you?" instead of "Who phoned you?" is if I remembered something about who it was (someone from the doctor's office, someone from your job, that person in your math class who's always calling you for the assignment, etc.) but could not recall the person's name.

Goat · Answer

Thanks for your time and help.

Thanks very much Khoff

What is/was the name of the...+relative clause

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