has(had) been covered

Dear teacher,
please correct my sentenese below:

We tried to see a picture on the wall but could not see it. A picture, even if it was (had been?) there, has(had) been covered with a thick layer of paint.

Thank you

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sbrodsky

Dear teacher,
please correct my sentenese below:

We tried to see the a picture on the wall but could not see it. The A picture, even if it was even (had been?) there, has(had) been covered with a thick layer of paint.

Thank you

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It reads as though you expected to see a specific picture, so I have suggested "the" instead of "a."

If it had even been there - you are not sure that a picture was ever on the wall.
If it had EVER been there would be a bit more natural to my ear.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Barb_D

It reads as though you expected to see a specific picture, so I have suggested "the" instead of "a."

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But, as far as I'm concerned, replacing "it" with "one" may fix the problem,

We tried to see a picture on the wall but could not see it one.

and also;

We tried to see a some pictures on the wall but could not see it any.

I totally agree that your changes are quite natural sounding!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Barb_D

It reads as though you expected to see a specific picture, so I have suggested "the" instead of "a."

If it had even been there - you are not sure that a picture was ever on the wall.
If it had EVER been there would be a bit more natural to my ear.

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Thank you, Barb_D!

Does it change anything (I mean "had been covered") if I add "long time ago" to the sentence?

The picture, if it was even there, had been covered with a thick layer of paint long time ago.

Thank you again

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sbrodsky

The picture, if it was even there, had been covered with a thick layer of paint long time ago.

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Sounds just fine to me!