The sp-vs-past-perfect tag has no wiki summary.
1
vote
3answers
88 views
Simple past sounds better but past perfect seems more accurate
I think it's grammatically more accurate to say,"The market was closed after a virus had been found." However, it sounds "better" to say,"The market was closed after a virus was found." Grammatically, ...
1
vote
1answer
70 views
Is past perfect necessary when you are talking in chronological order?
I have a question about using past perfect. I know that it's used when you want to refer to an older past event while talking about a more recent past event. But if you begin talking about past events ...
0
votes
1answer
89 views
Using Past Perfect after an event
While reading a book, I came across some sentences that used past-perfect "after" an event had taken place. Actually, I've seen many books do this, so this must be the grammatically correct way, but ...
-2
votes
2answers
4k views
When do we use “had had” and “have had”? [duplicate]
I have seen several sentences in English where some writers have written had twice in a row. I am a bit confused about when the grammar calls for using had had.
For example:
I had had my car ...
1
vote
2answers
75 views
Present and past perfect dilemma
This sentence is giving me trouble:
For several days I (have/had) not had the chance to see her until a
few hours ago.
I think had is correct because the time reference is a few hours ago, ...
-1
votes
1answer
137 views
Simple past vs past perfect [duplicate]
Simple past and past perfect are so confusing...
Please tell me if any of the sentences below make (or makes?) sense:
1) She had already opened the package before I had the chance to tell her not ...
-2
votes
1answer
61 views
“What I've” vs “What I” [duplicate]
I'm titling a post I'm writing as:
What I've Learned At {company name}
I'm struggling, however, with trying to figure if I should drop the I've for just I to make it:
What I Learned At ...
1
vote
1answer
105 views
American native speaker and perfect tenses
Yesterday I sent my friend a useful gift in online game. Today I can see he has not accepted it yet. Which sentence is grammatically correct and most natural in American English?
"You didn't ...
1
vote
1answer
200 views
Past vs Past Perfect
While writing a paper for my English class, I couldn't decided whether past or past perfect tense was needed. It's basically about how a guy whose house is destroyed because the government wants to ...
-1
votes
2answers
268 views
Simple past vs. past perfect
Which is correct to use in the following example, simple past or past perfect?
We were completely in the dark after the wind blew the candle out.
We were completely in the dark after the wind ...
1
vote
1answer
226 views
When not to use past perfect?
In a recent question: Past perfect or past simple in combination with present perfect? the asker presented three options.
I have examined the document you gave me and...
I have examined the ...
-1
votes
2answers
595 views
Usage of had in past tense
Being a non native speaker of English I am not sure about the usage of had. In my academics I have learned that had is only used to show that something happened prior to some event in the past ...
1
vote
3answers
234 views
Past perfect or past simple in combination with present perfect?
Suppose I received a document from my colleague, studied it and then gave him feedback in a letter. How should I construct the following sentense?
I have examined the document you gave me and...
...
-1
votes
1answer
352 views
Replacing past perfect tense with past tense
For had fallen in a when-clause, can the past perfect tense be replaced with the past tense?
Easily the most boring class was History of Magic, which was the only
one taught by a ghost. ...
-1
votes
1answer
427 views
Past Perfect and gerund vs. Past Perfect and Simple Past [closed]
When using the past perfect tense to say something happened before something else, is it correct to use the gerund form (as opposed to the past tense) to express the latter event? For example, is it ...
0
votes
1answer
360 views
Simple past or past perfect in this example
In the following examples:
When I was five years old I had a dog.
Is this a past perfect sentence? Here, I know that the 'dog' is not a verb and because we use third form of verb after 'had' so ...
0
votes
1answer
868 views
Simple past vs. Past perfect [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
How do the tenses in English correspond temporally to one another?
What's the difference between the following two sentences?
I had finished reading the book ...
1
vote
1answer
989 views
Use of “had said” in the “The Archers”
In the BBC radio drama The Archers, the following conversation takes place:
A: David, you are not going to say what you saw. You love your family, right?
David: What?
A: ...
2
votes
2answers
200 views
Choosing Past Simple or Past Perfect: Do I need “had” here?
Do I need "had" here? If yes, do I need to change "did" to "done"?
A: Lucy accidentally broke her mum’s favorite cup yesterday.
B: Oh! I think her mom was really angry at her, right?
A: ...
1
vote
2answers
496 views
Simple Past or Past Perfect
If I went to a place last night where I needed to show an id, but I forgot to have it on me. So if in the morning I was speaking to a friend(reporting on what happened), which one of the following ...
2
votes
2answers
1k views
“Until” and past perfect
Having seen one sentence in "Practical English Usage" by M.Swan (a very popular grammar book), I was really puzzled.
I waited until the rain had stopped.
The past perfect is generally used to ...
1
vote
3answers
245 views
Past Simple and Past Perfect Simple with 'already'
Do these two sentences have the same meaning?
When we arrived, David had already got home
and
When we arrived, David was already home
0
votes
3answers
6k views
When to use “I was … ” and when “I had been … ”? [closed]
I guess it's about simple past vs. past perfect usage but some examples are welcomed, I'm really not sure if I understand it correctly.
EDIT: Right, probably I should be more specific. The thing is ...
8
votes
3answers
375 views
What difference does using 'had' make to those two verb tenses, and if so, what is it?
What is the difference between if I had studied and if I studied?
Can you provide an example of when one usage would be more appropriate than the other?
2
votes
2answers
468 views
Should the past perfect be eschewed?
The past perfect serves a purpose: When describing things that happened in the past, it allows us to discuss things that happened before (i.e., in the past’s past). However, a procession of had, had, ...
10
votes
2answers
5k views
Why do people sometimes use the past perfect form of a verb when the past would suffice? (e.g. “you had mentioned”)
I noticed that my American friends tend to use the past perfect form when they use the verb mention in its past form, almost despite of the context of the sentence. I hear them say
"you had ...
