Search results for 'tag:Tenses tag:Dates' matching tags 'Tenses' and 'Dates'

Re: tense difference

Cool Breeze — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 11:19:41 GMT

Anonymous

I remember Sue, who transferred to another school just two months before this graduation date. Had she stayed in our school , she would have been expecting to graduate in a month like me.

My orginal sentences:

I remember Sue, who transferred to another school just two months before this graduation date. Had she stayed in our school , she would be expecting to graduate in a month like me.

Both sentences are fine with me. As you say, your sentence has a reference to the present time and gives the reader the impression that the speaker still attends school and has not yet graduated. The first sentence gives the impression that the speaker has graduated from school and Sue would probably have graduated from school as well if she hadn't transferred to another school.

Re: tense difference

Anonymous — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 10:07:11 GMT

Hi,

Can any one confirm whether this I wrote is a correct mixed condition with present-time meaning and goes well with the present tense of the sentence it is preceding? Thank you

I remember Sue, who transferred to another school just two months before this graduation date. Had she stayed in our school , she would be expecting to graduate in a month like me.

Re: tense difference

Anonymous — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 00:08:57 GMT

Thank you. I think my version is called a mixed condtionl with present-time implications, whereas Mr. M's correctional effort could be called a type 3 conditional.

My original writing, I believe, dealt with a person about to graduate from middle schoo. I think I wrote how wonderful it was, the teachers and students included. Then, I thought about Sue, then came to this:

Mr. M's correction:

I remember Sue, who transferred to another school just two months before this graduation date. Had she stayed in our school , she would have been expecting to graduate in a month like me.

My orginal sentences:

I remember Sue, who transferred to another school just two months before this graduation date. Had she stayed in our school , she would be expecting to graduate in a month like me.

I feel my version is OK, possibly better, since it carries a present-day implication as a mixed conditional, like "If I had studied harder at high school, I would be expecting to a good college now."

tense difference

Anonymous — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 22:30:43 GMT

Hi,

A few days back, I wrote something and post it in this forum for corrections. After a while, Mr. M corrected it, but I have one question. What is the difference between the two in terms of the tense change of the second sentence? Remind you that there is no change in the first sentence.

Mr. M's correction:

I remember Sue, who transferred to another school just two months before this graduation date. Had she stayed in our school , she would have been expecting to graduate in a month like me.

My orginal sentences:

I remember Sue, who transferred to another school just two months before this graduation date. Had she stayed in our school , she would be expecting to graduate in a month like me.

Sorry for not following up this question with the original thread posts.

Re: tense checking

Grammar Geek — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 03:10:20 GMT

I should have edited the post - they are clearly related, but the first three seemed unrelated to each other.

I broke them into each line so I could comment one by one.

I think the probable date I noted for his visit is one month from the day of writing

You wrote, "If I sleep one more day, I will be meeting my nephew who will be visiting us from the Phillipines." That sounds like he is coming tomorrow to me. How could I guess that it's actually another month away? You wrote that he's coming home "for a month vacation." It sounds like he's coming tomorrow, and staying for one month.

and I think I also have noted that the probable period of completion will last two months.What made you think the writing gives out an idea that I will try to finish the project in one day?

You said that he comes tomorrow, and you are starting today - so naturally that sounds like you'll do one month's worth of work in one day.

You changed the tense of the last sentence to present perfect; (semicolon OK?) but I don't think a past is wrong but a present tense is better because the choice made is current and currently related.

Yes, you made the decision quite recently. The present tense is appropriate. If you used the past, the entire thing should be written in a past tense, not the present.

Where did you want to use the semi-colon?

Re: tense checking

Anonymous — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 02:39:27 GMT

Thank you so much.

How would you divide this type of writing (diary or reflection piece?) into paragraphs, especially when the content of a possible paragraph is two or thre sentences long?

You asked:

I am starting to work on my two-month project on ~~today~~ this afternoon;, and when my nephew gets here, I will probably have finished half the project.Tenses are okay. You can finish half of a two-month project in one day?

I think the probable date I noted for his visit is one month from the day of writing and I think I also have noted that the probable period of completion will last two months. What made you think the writing gives out an idea that I will try to finish the project in one day?

You changed the tense of the last sentence to present perfect; (semicolon OK?) but I don't think a past is wrong but a present tense is better because the choice made is current and currently related.

Last sentence that you made a change:

Yes, I have made the choice and that is to finish the project on time.

questions on tenses

Anonymous — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 21:58:23 GMT

Hi,
1. Would you say it is appropriate to use the present perfect "have loosened" here (sort of an amusement park report) in a subordinate clause?

With a small hiccup, the ride tilts to the side and *** young ones who have loosened their grip are send sliding into the center of ..

2. Can you correct tenses here? Or for that matter, correct everything written if possible. Thanks.

I did great in my middle school. Few things I remember most about my days at school so far are my great teachers and the fun we had together. But now, I have to graduate. I have only a month before graduation. I remember Sue, who transferred to another school just two monthes before this graduation date. Had she stayed in our school, she would be expecting to graduate in a month like me. I miss her. She had great humor that could liven up the classroom atmosphere as quicky as a blink of an eye (with some exaggeration, ha, ha...). Anyway, after a month, I will be sitting in my house, sipping a cool lemondate, thinking of days I will be spending at *** High School and students and teachers I will be meeting. Before then, I should be enjoying (I should enjoy??) this time of remembrance and expectations.

Memos show Clinton turmoil

Jackson6612 — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 15:05:10 GMT

Memos show Clinton turmoil

Question: I would have written ''Clinton's turmoil''. Why didn't the author use apostrophe?

BY CRAIG GORDON AND TOM BRUNE | <email addresses removed by mod.>
August 13, 2008

Question: Why is semicolon used instead of comma to separate the email addresses above?

WASHINGTON - In a fresh postmortem (=an examination of a plan or event that failed, done to discover why it failed, =autopsy) on Hillary Rodham Clinton's presidential bid (=attempt to obtain or do something), newly published staff memos (=a short official note to another person in the same company or organization) and e-mails reveal a campaign hobbled (=to hobble something or someone means to make it more difficult for them to be successful or to achieve what they want) by internal rivalries (=a situation in which two or more people, teams, or companies are competing for something), faulty planning, bloated (=more than needed, =excessive) spending - and perhaps most important, Clinton's own failure to make the hard decisions.

Clinton offered herself to voters as a hyper-competent (=extra competent) executive ready to be president from day one. But atop (=on top of something) her own campaign, she was a hesitant leader, who allowed bitter infighting (=when members of the same group or organization argue, or compete with each other in an unfriendly way) to fester (=If an argument or bad feeling festers, it continues so that feelings of hate or dissatisfaction increase) among staffers over whether to go negative against Barack Obama, according to the Atlantic magazine.

The most bare-knuckled (=characterized by disorderly action and disregard for rules) lines of attack came from Clinton's chief strategist, Mark Penn, who urged Clinton to highlight Obama's "lack of American roots" due to his upbringing in Indonesia and Hawaii - saying he could only win if he faced Attila the Hun ((?406-453 AD) a king of the Huns (=an ancient people from Asia) who attacked and took control of large parts of the Roman Empire. He is famous for being violent and cruel).

But Clinton didn't embrace Penn's flag-waving (=the expression of strong national feelings, especially when these feelings seem too extreme) approach (=way of doing something), which campaign aides (=someone whose job is to help someone who has an important job, especially a politician) insist was never seriously considered.

Question: Clinton didn't embrace Penn's approach because she did not consider it seriously. Therefore, what campaign aides were saying is redundant.

The article also says that Clinton at times grew frustrated and short-tempered - including on the morning after her stunning third-place finish in Iowa in January, when aides on a call were silent. Clinton's camp dismissed the story as "inside-the-Beltway gossip" and "old news." And former campaign aides sharply disputed the notion of Clinton as an indecisive leader, with one campaign veteran saying, "Nobody seems to want to remember the fact that we had so many successes and come-from-behind victories in this campaign ... and they are due in large part to Senator Clinton's leadership."

Question: What does the line including on the morning...when aides on a call were silent mean? If she finished third place, then why would the author describe it as stunning? What does call mean in when aides on a call were silent?

Question: What does the phrase inside-the-Beltway gossip mean?

Question: What does the line Nobody seems to want to remember...to Senator Clinton's leadership'' mean?

But the e-mails and memos offer vivid (=very clear and detailed) new details about what had long been reported - that Clinton's headquarters was beset (=to make someone experience serious problems or dangers) by caustic (=bitter) internal battles involving Penn and former President Bill Clinton, who wanted to forcefully attack Obama, and others who wanted the New York senator to take a more positive tack (=method, =way of doing something). At one point, it was Bill Clinton - and not Hillary - who approved the famed 3 a.m. phone call ad.

Question: what had long been reported is passive past perfect tense. Am I right?

Question: I think headquarters should take plural verb. What do you say?

Question: Why are the hyphens used in -and not Hillary-? I believe commas would do instead?

Adding to the turmoil was the fact that the campaign had little strategy and no money left to seriously compete in the post-Super Tuesday contests - having (=the form having with a past participle can be used to introduce a clause in which you mention an action which had already happened before another action began) burned through $106 million before Iowa. That allowed Obama to win 12 straight contests and effectively wrap up (=to finish a job, meeting etc) the nomination.

Question: What does burned through mean?

In the end, the campaign's strategy came to reflect some of the internal turmoil, as Clinton veered (=changed course) from attacking Obama to emphasizing her personal side.

Question: What does her personal side mean?

Penn did offer some advice in March 2007 that proved on the mark - Clinton's path to victory lay with women and lower- and working-class voters.

Question: What does proved on the mark mean? I couldn't find it in the dictionary.

But by the time Clinton finally settled on that strategy to win the later primaries, it was too late.

Excerpts from the memos

"All of these articles about his boyhood in Indonesia and his life in Hawaii are geared towards showing his background is diverse, multicultural and putting that in a new light ... It also exposes a very strong weakness for him - his roots to basic American values and culture are at best (=even when considered in the most positive way) limited. I cannot imagine America electing a president during a time of war who is not at his center fundamentally American in his thinking and in his values." Strategist Mark Penn, from a March 19, 2007, memo to Hillary Rodham Clinton advising her to attack Barack Obama for his "lack of American roots."

Question: What does centre mean in the above context?

"The right knows Obama is unelectable except perhaps against Attila the Hun, and a third party would come in then anyway." Penn, from the same memo.

Question: Does right refer to right wing in the above context?

"This has been a very instructive call, talking to myself." Clinton, before angrily hanging up on a staff conference call the day after coming in third in Iowa in January. "She complained of being outmaneuvered (=to gain an advantage over someone by using cleverer or more skilful plans or methods) in Iowa and being painted as the establishment candidate," according to the Atlantic - but was met with near-silence.

Question: I would have written This has been..., talking to me. Why did she use myself?

Question: What is a conference call? Is it some kind of telephone call which address many poeple?

Question: Why is in used in coming in third?

"STOP IT!! I have help my tongue for weeks. After this morning's WP story, no longer. This makes me sick. This circular firing squad that is occurring is unattractive, unprofessional, unconscionable, and unacceptable ... It must stop." Robert Barnett, a Clinton lawyer and Washington insider, from a March 6, 2008, e-mail to campaign staff after a Washington Post story detailed the infighting.

Question: What does I have help my tongue for weeks mean?

Question: What does This circular firing squad mean?

Question: Were the comments in the last paragraph made by Robert Barnett?

Could someone check this letter please.

poet — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 20:18:25 GMT

Hi all,

Can someone check and correct this letter please. In order to get a more usual construction in English.

Thanks in advance,

poet.

I would like to use this letter as an opportunity to share with you my music tastes as well as my readings. Perhaps you are not very familiar with the French music scene. You may or may not have already heard about our French icon Serge Gainsbourg. Best known for his most legendary provocative erotic-pop song â Je t'aime... moi non plusâ (I love you... nor do I) that would achieve great international success in 1969. Certain people say that he was a poet to French song as Bob Dylan is to American song, even though both are quite different artistically, then again...â Histoire de Melody Nelsonâ, originally released in 1971, is now considered by many of his British and Francophone admirers to be his finest work. Certainly with the combination of its sublime orchestral arrangements and musical richness. This concept album is a warm tribute to Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita that relates a passionate and tragic affair between a middle-aged man and a 15 years old red-headed young girl. Serge Gainsbourg also has well explored later another musical genre. The Mellow reggae mood would actually be for him at that moment the perfect harmony for his talking voice and the subtle but sophisticated sensuality of his poetry. Thus, he traveled to Jamaica in 1979 and recorded in Kingston, with Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare â the greatest reggae rhythm section â, one of his most mesmerizing and memorable work. He offers us there a fresh but controversial interpretation of the French national anthem âLa Marseillaiseâ, renamed for the occasion âAux Armes et CÃ¦teraâ, which inspired the eponymous title of this album.

To finish off with French music, let me tell you more about Noir DÃ©sir. It is to them that i owe my fervent and sincere passion for The Gun Club for years. Jeffrey clearly has had a massive influence on them, especially on the lead singer Bertrand, who greatly admires him. I am referring of course, to the man that Jeffrey was and not only the musician. They met a couple of times in the South of France and they hit it off. When Bertrand learnt the sudden passing of Jeffrey, he composed straightaway a memorial song â just him playing his acoustic guitar and singing â simply called âSong for JLPâ. This powerful song is the sound of an intense rolling wave of emotion deeply felt after the loss of a significant soul. This probably remains one of the most profoundly moving eulogies dedicated to Jeffrey to date.

Your brother also was an avid reader, and I'm sure that you have great interest in literature too. Therefore, I'm so glad to introduce you to Antonin Artaud. At a starting point, you should know that others authors, except for a very few audacious writers, are quite insipid, and they easily fall short in comparison with Antonin Artaud's outstanding writing talents. He was a french poet, essayist, actor, playwright, visionary and even so, a marginal figure in his lifetime. His name is closely connected with a major revolt against lack of authenticity in language and in the act of writing itself. He suffered, among others, from neuralgia due to meningitis after-effects which gave him a nervous temperament. Artaud then experienced lifelong addiction to opiates to relieve that pain and the increasing additional symptoms caused by that illness. That disease is originally behind the duality of his relentless inner struggle between the physical pain he endured his whole life through and his creativity that he compared to a fundamental alienation from his emotions. His obsessive goal was to change the traditional Western theater from an entertaining and commercial orientation performance to a true communion between actors and audience. He also made a journey to Mexico in search of forgotten civilizations to study primitive societies and their occult practices from which he cultivated a serious interest in, for the purpose of exploring the mystical side to his personality. From that time, and since his return voyage, Artaud became increasingly odd and his extreme behaviour inevitably led him to captivity in various mental hospitals for nine years. Psychiatrists would try in vain to remove his poetic nature by subjecting him electroshock treatments causing many states of coma. Yet, his work would be, at that time, even greater than ever before. Antonin Artaud died shortly after his release of cancer, due to acts of ill-treatment against him throughout his confinement. Well, i tried here to share a lot of my deepest feelings with you in such a way so as to being open and showing my inner self to you verbally, just as these presents i give you which are heartfelt ways to invite you to come into my world. I hope you will enjoy them with a great pleasure.

Re: would

Tuongvan — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 03:07:21 GMT

Thank you very much Grammar Geek,but to be frank ,I'm still confused aout the use of' Would' here.Can we use WILL instead of WOULD in #1 ?and why don't they use WILL in # 2?Similarly your sentence is " If the candidate has such proficiency, it would be preferable .Why not "WILL be preferrable" ?

Normally my grammar books say " If + present tense , WILL +verb .For example :If I am free I will go out . It seems to me WOULD in the original #1 and #2 here refers to something uncertain in the present and future.
Could you help me use the modal WOULD exactly?

Best Wishes

Search results for 'tag:Tenses tag:Dates' matching tags 'Tenses' and 'Dates'

Re: tense difference

Re: tense difference

Re: tense difference

tense difference

Re: tense checking

Re: tense checking

questions on tenses

Memos show Clinton turmoil

Could someone check this letter please.

Hi all, Can someone check and correct this letter please. In order to get a more usual construction in English. Thanks in advance, poet.

Re: would

Hi all,

Can someone check and correct this letter please. In order to get a more usual construction in English.

Thanks in advance,

poet.