English Grammar

why this difference?

User since 2013
Posts: 1

29 May 2014

bonjour sur ma leçon de ce jour, on doit dire: before horatio came into work yesterday, he had been drinking scotch! alors pourquoi on peut pas dire: horatio had never been visiting the us before he arrived with bruno in the early 1980s merci à celui ou celle qui me répondra.

5 comments

Pimpanella
User since 2012
Posts: 288
30 May 2014

Hi arc grays surprise,
Because of the negation : when you say "he had been drinking" there's an idea of duration, he didn't just drink a glass, he took his time and drank the bottle.
In the other sentence : "he had never visited," we can't have an idea of lenght, because he didn't visit the US at all. It would make no sense to talk about the lasting time of something that you didn't do. Like : j'ai passé toute la matinée à ne pas écrire mon roman...
Whereas you could say : Horatio had been visiting theUS for months before he met Bruno in the early 1980s.
You're welcome !
Hi arc grays surprise, Because of the negation : when you say "he had been drinking" there's an idea of duration, he didn't just drink a glass, he took his time and drank the bottle. In the other sentence : "he had never visited," we can't have an idea of lenght, because he didn't visit the US at all. It would make no sense to talk about the lasting time of something that you didn't do. Like : j'ai passé toute la matinée à ne pas écrire mon roman... Whereas you could say : Horatio had been visiting theUS for months before he met Bruno in the early 1980s. You're welcome !
Nicole Legrand
User since 2013
Posts: 1
12 Dec. 2014

Je ne vois pas bien la différence entre would et should_ Nicole
Je ne vois pas bien la différence entre would et should_ Nicole
AhQ ['a: kiu]
User since 2006
Posts: 2715
13 Dec. 2014

Ms Nicole,
click "my account"
in your Gymglish workbook, choose "grammar"
"could and would" should be made out.
If not so, for sure Pimpanella will help you out. I also could.
Ms Nicole, click "my account" in your Gymglish workbook, choose "grammar" "could and would" should be made out. If not so, for sure Pimpanella will help you out. I also could.
Thierry Ekszterowicz
User since 2014
Posts: 1
15 Dec. 2014

I would like to print the grammar'lesson send by Gymglish ; how it's possible ?
Thanks
I would like to print the grammar'lesson send by Gymglish ; how it's possible ? Thanks
Gymglish Support
User since 2010
Posts: 115
15 Dec. 2014

Hi Nicole, I think you asked us the same question via our support email address, so you've received an answer now!

Thierry, you should be able to print any part of your lesson in the same way you print any web page. If you want to know how to access old grammar lessons, you should follow AhQ's instructions for finding the grammar topics you have encountered.
Hi Nicole, I think you asked us the same question via our support email address, so you've received an answer now! Thierry, you should be able to print any part of your lesson in the same way you print any web page. If you want to know how to access old grammar lessons, you should follow AhQ's instructions for finding the grammar topics you have encountered.

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