[Grammar] Require explanation in past continuity

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bkpsusmitaa

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People in India speak English like they
speak Hindi. For example,

suppose yesterday we went to a fair. We were
moving around.
We observed that some were buying clothes while others
were playing.

This is a transliteration of Hindi. In Hindi, we express
continuity of action explicitly.

But how do we express the above events in English? Should it be like:

We went to a fair yesterday. Some bought clothes, while others played
games.

Please explain.
Regards
 
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Barb_D

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There are many times when I've heard an Indian English speaker use the -ing form when the simple present or simple past would be used by most other English speakers.

In the first case of your fair, however, you can use either. You watched people for a while -- there was duration. In your second example, you just say "we went" not "we observed" so the simple past would sound more natural to me.
 

bkpsusmitaa

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What do you mean by 2nd conditionals?
 

5jj

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bkpsusmitaa

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I'm not a teacher, but I write for a living. Please don't ask me about 2nd conditionals, but I'm a safe bet for what reads well in (American) English
I asked it here because
Barb_D had the above signature under her post
 

bkpsusmitaa

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I am sorry I couldn't explain myself better :) . I should have added, "... in your (i.e., Barb_D's ) context".
 

5jj

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I am sorry I couldn't explain myself better :) . I should have added, "... in your (i.e., Barb_D's ) context".
No problem. I thought you were being irrelevant. I was wrong. Sorry.
 

Barb_D

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It means I don't know a lot of the finer points of grammar and I'm terrible at labels, but I can help you write naturally.
 

bkpsusmitaa

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...but I can help you write naturally.
There aren't many who write naturally. Millions read English, but few are brilliant, original authors.
Because I am her dad, my daughter does not take me seriously. (This isn't bad, it's good that she treats me as her equal in English. That way she can argue and learn better). She needed an external, independent source to verify what I told her. A few positive posts really reinforced her views.
I thank you all for replying so quickly! I also liked 5jj's modesty, that he apologised, though it was I who couldn't explain myself better!
And what do you write, usually? If you don't like discussing personal detail in a forum you could drop a private message.
 

5jj

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I also liked 5jj's modesty, that he apologised, though it was I who couldn't explain myself better!
It wasn't really modesty. Having been around this forum for some time, and knowing Barb's signature, I should have realised what you were referring to.

Those of us who respond here regularly are reasonably confident that we know something about the language we teach, write in and/or are interested in. However, none of us believe that we know everything. One of the pleasures for me of working in this forum is that I frequently learn new things.

No matter how much we (think we) know, we are all human, and we can make mistakes. When we do, we need to rectify them as soon as possible. We old hands cannot help people if we lead them to believe that we are always right and that, in case of misunderstanding, they must necessarily be wrong.
 

Barb_D

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The vast majority of what I write is in a business setting. My overall goal is clarity. Sometimes I can have a bit more fun with my writing and get to play with the "voice" we use, but usually it's pretty straight-forward stuff. How your student loan works. What you can do to make your landfill closing more sustainable. The difference between short-term and long-term disabilty insurance. Case studies, brochures, presentations, articles, customer letters, employee communications, procedureal guides -- all things I've written.
 

bkpsusmitaa

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... in case of misunderstanding, they must necessarily be wrong.
Then this is rationality, empathy and compassion (and negation of one's base desire to be always right) - even greater qualities than modesty.
And
Barb_D, thank you. I would remember!
 
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