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Discussion Groups / English Usage / January 2010was-ere
I was wondering if it was convenient for you for me to pick the item up in person. I was wondering if it were convenient for you for me to pick the item up in person. Normally, I would use "were" after if. I'm not sure here.  SignaturePosters should say where they live, and for which area they are asking questions. I was born and then lived in Western Pa. 10 years Indianapolis 7 years Chicago 6 years Brooklyn, NY 12 years Baltimore 26 years >I was wondering if it was convenient for you for me to pick the item >up in person. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > >Normally, I would use "were" after if. I'm not sure here. You could use "would be" instead of "were" or "was". I was wondering if it would be convenient for you for me to pick the item up in person. SignaturePeter Duncanson, UK (in alt.english.usage) > I was wondering if it was convenient for you for me to pick the item > up in person. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Normally, I would use "were" after if. I'm not sure here. "Were" is the subjunctive and indicates either a wish or a statement contrary to fact, for example, "If I were king". Use "was" in your sentence. Bill in Kentucky > > I was wondering if it was convenient for you for me to pick the item > > up in person. [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > contrary to fact, for example, "If I were king". Use "was" in your > sentence. The subjunctive also expreses uncertainty, which applies here, unless the "if it was/were" is only there for courtesy, it being nearly certain that the other person will in fact find it convenient, as for example in order to complete a sale. SignatureJohn Varela Trade NEWlamps for OLDlamps for email > I was wondering if it was convenient for you for me to pick the item up > in person. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Normally, I would use "were" after if. I'm not sure here. The sentence is an example of the "optative" subjunctive, which represents the utterance as something desired or planned. Remember that in the subjunctive mood, tenses do not have the simple temporal meanings that they do in the indicative. The idiomatic form would use auxiliaries to express the mode: I was wondering if it would be convenient for you for me to pick the item up in person. The past-tense form suggests modest expression of desire. (Compare "I wish you would stay a little longer.") SignatureCordially, Eric Walker, Owlcroft House http://owlcroft.com/english/ >> I was wondering if it was convenient for you for me to pick the item up >> in person. [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] >The past-tense form suggests modest expression of desire. (Compare "I >wish you would stay a little longer.") Isn't the subjunctive present progressive, "I wish you be staying a little longer."? SignaturePosters should say where they live, and for which area they are asking questions. I was born and then lived in Western Pa. 10 years Indianapolis 7 years Chicago 6 years Brooklyn, NY 12 years Baltimore 26 years [...] > Isn't the subjunctive present progressive, "I wish you be staying a > little longer."? No. I suppose it would be "I wish you would be staying a little longer." SignatureCordially, Eric Walker, Owlcroft House http://owlcroft.com/english/ > I was wondering if it was convenient for you for me to pick the item > up in person. [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Normally, I would use "were" after if. I'm not sure here. It looks to me like simple indirect speech. What you were saying to yourself is "Is it convenient ...?". I am wondering if it is convenient; I was wondering if it was convenient. Peter's "if it would be convenient" is still accounted for by indirect speech: this time, you were asking yourself "will it be convenient". I agree with Eric that it's an example of the polite use of the past tense, but that's the past tense of "be wondering": the past form "was" is just sequence-of-tenses stuff. |
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