things will be worse than if you had told the truth

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Anonymous

#510234 Tue, 06 May 08 08:48 AM

Which is the most appropriate passage? Are all OK?

A: A lie is always bad. After having told one lie, you will often have to tell another in order to be consistent. And in the end, things will be worse than if you had told the truth.

B: A lie is always bad. After having told one lie, you will often have to tell another in order to be consistent. And in the end, things will be worse than if you told the truth.

C: A lie is always bad. After having told one lie, you will often have to tell another in order to be consistent. And in the end, things will be worse than if you tell the truth.

Anonymous

MrPedantic

#510248 Tue, 06 May 08 09:27 AM

Hello Anon,

You could think of them as three variants, which reflect the three "types" of conditional statement:

A: A lie is always bad. After having told one lie, you will often have to tell another in order to be consistent. And in the end, things will be worse than [they would have been] if you had told the truth.

B: A lie is always bad. After having told one lie, you will often have to tell another in order to be consistent. And in the end, things will be worse than [they would be] if you told the truth.

C: A lie is always bad. After having told one lie, you will often have to tell another in order to be consistent. And in the end, things will be worse than [they are] if you tell the truth.

Best wishes,

MrP

MrPedantic

Joined on Wed, Oct 13 2004

Veteran Member (12,168)

...opella forensis / adducit febris...

Conditionals

Anonymous

#510288 Tue, 06 May 08 11:09 AM

Hi, Mr. Pedantic. Which would you choose as best?

Anonymous

MrPedantic

#510560 Tue, 06 May 08 10:57 PM

Hello Anon,

I would choose #1; simply because the tenses are in accord. (The hidden "type 2" and "type 1" conditionals in the last two examples change the focus and suggest a movement towards more "general" statements.)

Best wishes,

MrP

MrPedantic

Tenses, Conditionals