[Grammar] I was wondering which country you are/were representing

[andi harper]

Hello. I'd like to know which tense to put the verb in ( present or past) in a sentence:
I was wondering which country you are/were representing ( it's about a sport competition that is happening right now and I'm talking to the person in the present). much obliged

 

[andi harper]

You will hear both forms.

Is this the case that technically were is grammatically correct but in spoken english people would usually use are?

 

[Raymott]

It doesn't matter because the answer will be the same unless the person has changed country between the wondering and the asking.

 

[konungursvia]

There is a rule, to harmonize the tenses: "I didn't know you were British." v. "I didn't know you are British."
Logically, you should be able to choose the present; in practice it often sounds unnatural, and what sounds natural, and is most often said, is rather illogical. So be it.

 

[andi harper]

It doesn't matter because the answer will be the same unless the person has changed country between the wondering and the asking.

Could you rephrase or explain what you said or give an example? I didn't get it.
:-?

 

[Raymott]

Could you rephrase or explain what you said or give an example? I didn't get it.
:-?

My response was to Piscean. Rephrasing it is not worth the bother. You can use either.

 

[andi harper]

How about this: Have you heard anything about it? (this part is clear) but what if I started the sentence, still talking to the person in the present, like this:
I was just going to ask you/I wanted to ask you if (here comes the tricky part) you've/you'd/ you heard anything about it.

 

[emsr2d2]

"Wanna" is not an English word. Please edit your post so it does not contain non-standard/sub-standard English.

 

[andi harper]

You will hear all three. In this sort of indirect question, native speakers do not normally worry too much about the 'ideal' combination of tenses, particularly as the direct question was never actually uttered.

Thanks, but what would be the correct choice?

 

[Raymott]

Thanks, but what would be the correct choice?

"I wanted to know if [you] heard anything about it." They are all correct.

"I wanted to know if you've heard anything about it." Correct and generic.
"I wanted to know if you heard anything about it." When?
"I wanted to know if you'd heard anything about it." Before what more recent event?

 

[andi harper]

"I wanted to know if you'd heard anything about it."

I think that this sentence has to be the grammatically correct choice because this would simply be following the rules of the sequence of tenses as present perfect backshifts into past perfect. And the recent event is me actually wanting to know. Am I correct?

 

[Raymott]

Sure, if you like. You're not wrong.

 

[GoesStation]

The English language has no body of Immortals to tell us that one choice is grammatically correct while another isn't. When we write that something is correct, we're suggesting that it sounds logical to an Anglophone. I'm afraid you'll be disappointed if you insist on finding one correct answer from a list of sentences when all the sentences sound logical to the Anglophones and teachers on this board -- even if some of the sentences violate a rule in an English-as-a-second-language textbook.

 

[andi harper]

Here's a situation: I've lost my book at school and when I get a chance I approach my schoolmates and say-I was wondering if you had seen/saw it by any chance. Which tense should I choose?
Thanks in advance.

 

[emsr2d2]

I'd say either "I'm wondering if you have seen my book" or "I was wondering if you had seen my book.

 

[andi harper]

How about this: I've heard that my friend is leaving tomorrow and when I meet him I say-Hey, I heard you are/were leaving tomorrow?

 

[andi harper]

How many variations of this are you going to come up with?

Backshifting is almost always correct.

If, at the time of reporting a situation, the situation reported is still valid, then backshifting is optional. It's as simple as that.

Hi. Thank you. Sorry for being fussy. But just one more thing. What if I heard he was going to leave tomorrow but later I find out that he has changed his mind and is not leaving, so I want to know why and when I see him I begin my sentence with I heard you were going to leave Is this correct? Because I think that saying I heard you were leaving in this situation would imply that he's still going to leave.