American English

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August 28th, 2006, 11:06 AM
Chuvak

American English

I was told that in American English the sequence of tenses rules are slightly reduced, i.e.:

American English: I said that I am an Engineer
Britain English: I said that I was an Engineer

Is it right ???
August 28th, 2006, 02:18 PM
fortheether

Re: American English

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuvak

I was told that in American English the sequence of tenses rules are slightly reduced, i.e.:

American English: I said that I am an Engineer

I currently am an Engineer.

Britain English: I said that I was an Engineer

I used to be an Engineer but am no longer.

Is it right ???

I speak American English. If I was to say past tense I would use the "British English" example above.

Scott
August 28th, 2006, 02:53 PM
Бармалей

I don't really agree with this -- I've heard plenty of Americans say both variants. Perhaps in the commonwealth countries there is some clear-cut variant, but that's not really the case in the US, I'd say.
August 28th, 2006, 04:11 PM
Vadim84

Shouldn't the variant 'I said that I am an Engineer' only be used if the speaker is still an engineer (at the moment of speaking)?
And if he is no longer an engineer (at the moment of speaking), shouldn't 'I said that I was an Engineer' be the only possible version?
:?:
August 28th, 2006, 04:32 PM
Ramil

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vadim84

Shouldn't the variant 'I said that I am an Engineer' only be used if the speaker is still an engineer (at the moment of speaking)?
And if he is no longer an engineer (at the moment of speaking), shouldn't 'I said that I was an Engineer' be the only possible version?
:?:

I've been taught that "I said I am" is incorrect except direct speech:
I said: 'I am...' and when you're narrating then you should use sequence of tenses rules: I said I was...
Either my teachers were wrong or people often neglect rules while speaking.
Or, maybe, the rules have changed over time.
August 28th, 2006, 10:30 PM
Бармалей

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ramil

or people often neglect rules while speaking.

Ding-ding-ding! We have a winner... :D
August 29th, 2006, 06:01 AM
Ramil

Quote:

Originally Posted by Бармалей

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ramil

or people often neglect rules while speaking.

Ding-ding-ding! We have a winner... :D

Well, I don't know what to say. I want to say thanks to the Academy, to Mama, to Papa and to my dog. I love you all. :)
August 29th, 2006, 09:21 AM
Chuvak

Thanks !!!

BTW, Can I use the adjective "abhorrent" referring to people, i.e. is it natural to say "I'm gonna eliminate all my most abhorrent enemies" ???
August 29th, 2006, 12:50 PM
Бармалей

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chuvak

Thanks !!!

BTW, Can I use the adjective "abhorrent" referring to people, i.e. is it natural to say "I'm gonna eliminate all my most abhorrent enemies" ???

I suppose so, but it's much more common to use it to refer to a thing or an idea ("fascism is an abhorent ideology").
August 30th, 2006, 01:03 AM
chaika

chaika

plus -- it's not likely you would want to use "gonna" and "abhorent" in the same sentence! They are from different registers.
August 30th, 2006, 02:36 AM
DDT

Re: chaika

Quote:

Originally Posted by chaika

plus -- it's not likely you would want to use "gonna" and "abhorent" in the same sentence! They are from different registers.

That is true but if one wanted to add a touch of comedy if would be OK.
September 1st, 2006, 03:30 AM
charlestonian

I said I was... period
September 1st, 2006, 04:04 AM
challenger

I believe you can use the present if it is, in fact, true information. But: "I told him I was a zebra."
September 1st, 2006, 03:00 PM
Бармалей

Quote:

Originally Posted by challenger

I believe you can use the present if it is, in fact, true information. But: "I told him I was a zebra."

You are a very talented zebra, to be able to type dispite having the clunky hooves.
September 1st, 2006, 03:16 PM
gRomoZeka

Quote:

Originally Posted by Бармалей

Quote:

Originally Posted by challenger

I believe you can use the present if it is, in fact, true information. But: "I told him I was a zebra."

You are a very talented zebra, to be able to type dispite having the clunky hooves.

- Алло, вам говорящая лошадь не нужна?
[бросают трубку]
- Алло, вам говорящая лошадь не нужна?
[бросают трубку]
- Алло, вам говорящая лошадь не нужна?
- Сколько можно звонить?! НЕ НУЖНА!!!
- Так бы сразу и сказали... Думаете, легко копытом номер набирать?
September 1st, 2006, 07:38 PM
challenger

Quote:

Originally Posted by Бармалей

Quote:

Originally Posted by challenger

I believe you can use the present if it is, in fact, true information. But: "I told him I was a zebra."

You are a very talented zebra, to be able to type dispite having the clunky hooves.

So are you, despite your spelling 8)
September 1st, 2006, 11:43 PM
Бармалей

Quote:

Originally Posted by challenger

Quote:

Originally Posted by Бармалей

Quote:

Originally Posted by challenger

I believe you can use the present if it is, in fact, true information. But: "I told him I was a zebra."

You are a very talented zebra, to be able to type dispite having the clunky hooves.

So are you, despite your spelling 8)

Yeah, I know. Scary to think that I'm actually a scary native English speaker, eh? DESPITE my crummy spelling, I'm actually far worse a speaker of Russian... :o