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ESL forum > Ask for help > Answer please!    

Answer please!



metcet20
Turkey

Answer please!
 

-Rick ���������� (not/go)until he �������� (speak)to the manager.

Fill in past simple or perfect. Why?      Thank you

10 Jan 2012      





mirela.sorina
Romania

did not go
had spoken

10 Jan 2012     



yanogator
United States

One possibility is "Rick wouldn �t go until he had spoken to the manager". Another is "Rick didn �t go until he had spoken to the manager". I �m sure there are other good answers.
 
Bruce

10 Jan 2012     



memthefirst
Turkey

This sentence means;
He went after he spoke to the manager.
(When we talk about the sequence of the events in this sentence. 1.He spoke to the manager.2.He went.)
But when I say "didn �t go" and "had spoken" , something sounds strange or wrong.
These two actions happened one after another so I would say;
"didn �t go / spoke"

10 Jan 2012     



metcet20
Turkey

Can �t we say that there are two past actions first is not going second is speaking to the manager and the first action is expressed in past perfect
 
like He had stayed in until he spoke to the manager

10 Jan 2012     



yanogator
United States

No. The past perfect is for an action that happened before another action (which is in the simple past). Don �t forget the word "until" here. It tells us that the speaking came before the going.
 
It is a little easier to understand if we add a word:
 
He didn �t go until after he had spoken to the manager.
 
I hope this helps.

Bruce

10 Jan 2012     



ngthsang
Vietnam

"Rick hadn �t gone until he spoke to the manager.
= When Rick had spken to the manager, he went."??????

11 Jan 2012     



Apodo
Australia

 
@metcet - The first action is speaking to the manager. The second action is going.
 
He spoke to the manager and then he went.   He completes the action of speaking, then goes.
 
He didn �t go until he had spoken to the manager.
 
He stayed until he had spoken to the manager.
 
 
@memthefirst - Because one action is completed before the other we need past perfect.
To use simple past there would have to be two statements connected by �and then � to show the time sequence. He spoke to the manager and then he went.
Some speakers may use the simple past as you suggested, but it isn �t grammatically correct IMHO.
 
 

11 Jan 2012