I wasn't born at the time?

[Ryan.]

Someone is talking about an event in 1960 and ask you whether you remember it or not and you want to say you were not born until later. what do you say? I wasn't born at the time?

Thanks.

 

[MikeNewYork]

Someone is talking about an event in 1960 and ask you whether you remember it or not and you want to say you were not born until later. what do you say? I wasn't born at the time?

Thanks.

That would be OK in colloquial English. Also, one could say "I wasn't born yet".

 

[emsr2d2]

Or "I wasn't alive then". I would use that or "I hadn't been born then". You could also say something like "No. I wasn't born until 1967!"

 

[bhaisahab]

I wouldn't say "I wasn't born yet".

 

[konungursvia]

I've always liked the thought-provoking "I was dead then."

 

[Boris Tatarenko]

Hello.

What do you think about: "I wasn't born then"?

Thanks.

 

[emsr2d2]

Hello.

What do you think about: "I wasn't born then"?

Thanks.

Did you read post #4 from bhaisahab?

 

[Boris Tatarenko]

Sure, but I replaced "yet" with "then".

 

[emsr2d2]

Sure, but I replaced "yet" with "then".

You did. Sorry, I missed that.

I think "I wasn't born then" is fine.

 

[Tdol]

What do you think about: "I wasn't born then"?

I'd use it.

 

[Ryan.]

I've always liked the thought-provoking "I was dead then."

Really? Isn't it weird to say I was dead then?

 

[Tdol]

What's thought-provoking for one person is weird to another. ;-)

 

[emsr2d2]

Really? Isn't it weird to say I was dead then?

That's why it was referred to as "thought-provoking". It's true that something can't really be dead until after it has been alive but the statement is unusual enough to make the listener think carefully!

 

[EdCrotty]

I don't see a problem with saying "I wasn't born at the time".
"I wasn't born yet" is correct too.
There are lots of correct ways to say this. You could also say:
"I had not been born yet".

 

[Ashraful Haque]

Why 'at the time' and not 'at that time'?

'At the time' sounds a bit vague to me. If we use it to talk about the past, can we also say: "I won't be able to make it tomorrow. I'll be out of town at the time."

 

[Tarheel]

One, it's not vague. Two, yes you can.

 

[Ashraful Haque]

One, it's not vague. Two, yes you can.

Isee. It can be used to talk about both past and future.
What about 'at that time'? Is it wrong to use 'that'?

 

[Phaedrus]

what do you say? I wasn't born at the time?

I'm OK with "I wasn't born at the/that time" in that context, but it's important to note that "wasn't born" is not a dynamic passive in that sentence; the sentence does not mean "My mother didn't bear me at the/that time." Instead, the meaning is stative. It's as if "wasn't born" were a copula followed by an adjective. The sentence is equivalent in meaning to "I was unborn at the/that time."

 

[Skrej]

Holy thread revival, Batman! Both Jesus and Dr. Frankenstein would be jealous!

 

[Tarheel]

Isee. It can be used to talk about both past and future.
What about 'at that time'? Is it wrong to use 'that'?

Offhand, no. (Context is always helpful.)