Kai
English Grammar Hi friends are these right? I really have no idea which tense I should use in these sentences. 1. It was he who killed my brother or should it say "it is he who killed my brother." 2. he is the one who killed my brother or should it say "he was the one who killed my brother."
2019년 11월 18일 오전 3:02
답변 · 5
In my opinion, it doesn’t really matter that much. In these examples, the subordinate clause is irrelevant to the tense in the main clause. If “he” is still around now, then the present tense is better. If “he” is no longer around, we would be more likely to use the past, but we might use the present if his action was so important as to render him “immortal”.
2019년 11월 18일
Thank you
2019년 11월 19일
#1 is correct but unnatural. #2 He is ... is natural if the person is still living.
2019년 11월 18일
아직도 답을 찾지 못하셨나요?
질문을 남겨보세요. 원어민이 도움을 줄 수 있을 거예요!