E erudite Member Joined Sep 29, 2011 Member Type English Teacher Native Language Korean Home Country South Korea Current Location South Korea Sep 29, 2011 #1 Is it grammatically correct to say "I saw an advertisement in today's newspaper that said all boots were 50%." or should i use "are" instead of "were"?
Is it grammatically correct to say "I saw an advertisement in today's newspaper that said all boots were 50%." or should i use "are" instead of "were"?
T Tdol No Longer With Us (RIP) Joined Nov 13, 2002 Member Type English Teacher Native Language British English Home Country UK Current Location Japan Sep 29, 2011 #2 Were is correct- it's backshifting after said, but as they're still 50%, the present is fine too.
E erudite Member Thread starter Joined Sep 29, 2011 Member Type English Teacher Native Language Korean Home Country South Korea Current Location South Korea Oct 5, 2011 #3 Thank you so much for your clear and simple explanation!!! "backshifting" definitely helped me understand the "past tense" that was used in this sentence!!! And also thank you for another possibility of using "are"! You Rock!!!
Thank you so much for your clear and simple explanation!!! "backshifting" definitely helped me understand the "past tense" that was used in this sentence!!! And also thank you for another possibility of using "are"! You Rock!!!
