Yankee wrote: I do see your point, though. I suppose we would tend to be more "willing" to use the present perfect in a sentence such as " My bike's been stolen. " -- especially with "Damn!" preceding it. Still, I wouldn't find " Damn! My bike

Yankee wrote: If you decide to use the present perfect, then it doesn't matter whether the sentence is active or passive. You have decided to use the present perfect. Period. Likewise, if you decide to use the past simple, then it doesn't matter

If you decide to use the present perfect, then it doesn't matter whether the sentence is active or passive. You have decided to use the present perfect. Period. Likewise, if you decide to use the past simple, then it doesn't matter whether the

Hi Active sentence: Somebody stole my bicycle. Passive sentence: My bicycle has been stolen. Is the passive sentence OK, in your opinion? I would write: My bicycle was (simple past) stolen. As far as I know if the active sentence is

Thank you Yankee - you've been a tremendous help. My English has become so corrupted over the years that I can no longer tell when a sentence sounds idiomatic, which often causes me to second-guess myself. One more thing: for some reason, it

Here are a few more comments : 1) She was spoken to by a gentleman. OK 2) Such a thing can't be thought of by us. Grammatical, but to me it's unnatural. 3) He has never been heard of by us since. With the word 'since' in the sentence, it

"reports have been developed" means that someone(s) did this action. It is a passive sentence too.

Anonymous wrote: Hi~ I would like to know what's the difference (in terms of the underlined parts) between sentences 1 & 2. 1. Rob was devastated by the news of her death. 2. Rob was devastated . Is sentence 1 a passive

I must ask more about this. 3.He died in the 17th century. --> This is present tense. 4.He seems to have died in the 17th century. --> Is this too a present tense? I think this is a passive sentence

Thanks Yankee. 1. The castle seems to have been built in the 17th century. 2. The castle would seem to have been built in the 17th century. The first sentence is a passive sentence. It means people think or believe that it was built in the