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twins
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New2grammar  #542479  Wed, 16 Jul 08 06:04 PM
I know a friend who always wanted eight kids. When he knew his wife was pregnant with twins he was excited. After their birth, he decided to stop there. He had no idea what he was getting into.

Is the above correct?

Thanks.
  
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Marius Hancu  #542488  Wed, 16 Jul 08 06:24 PM
I know a friend who always wanted eight kids. When he knew his wife was pregnant with twins he was excited. After their birth, he decided to stop there, as he realized he had had no idea what he was getting into.
  
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New2grammar  #542496  Wed, 16 Jul 08 06:38 PM

I agree with you that your version flows better. I think I heard a reporter say my original version. Maybe there was a long pause. What do you think?


After their birth, he decided to stop there...he had no idea what he was getting into.
  
Philip  #542499  Wed, 16 Jul 08 06:41 PM
New2grammar

I agree with you that your version flows better. I think I heard a reporter say my original version. Maybe there was a long pause. What do you think?


After their birth, he decided to stop there...he had no idea what he was getting into.
There are probably very few reporters out there with the sophisticated English skills that Marius has!
  
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New2grammar  #542503  Wed, 16 Jul 08 06:48 PM
Philip, thank you for your reply but I don't quite get what you mean. Could you help me understand the difference and what makes MH's version more sophisticated?
  
Philip  #542505  Wed, 16 Jul 08 06:52 PM
I know a friend who always wanted eight kids. When he knew his wife was pregnant with twins he was excited. After their birth, he decided to stop there, as he realized he had had no idea what he was getting into.

This version by Marius combines two sentences into one, using a past perfect tense.
  
,
New2grammar  #542508  Wed, 16 Jul 08 06:56 PM
Thanks but I understand the grammatical aspect of his version.What I would like to know is the sophisticated aspect. Are you saying using the past perfect automatically makes a sentence sound sophisticated?
  
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