Is there anything wrong with the following statement?
"My musical career has taken me all over the world and I am so fortunate to enjoy great tasting food everywhere I go"
or should it be,
"My musical career has taken me all over the world and I have been so fortunate to enjoy great tasting food everywhere I've gone"
Pls advise what tense rule applies to each.
Thanks!
2006-09-03 12:53:00 · 15 answers · asked by Christopher L 1 in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
The second sentence is grammatically correct, however, there is a puncuation error. It should read: "My musical career has taken me all over the world, and I have been so fortunate to enjoy great tasting food everywhere I've gone." You started out with the past tense. Always keep with like tenses within a sentence. Not only is it grammatically correct, if flows easier and is easier to understand.
Hope that helps!
2006-09-03 12:59:34 · answer #1 · answered by his_lil_patriot 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Here are some changes that should correct both parts of the cojoined sentences while maintaining the same tense:
---My musical career takes me all over the world and I am fortunate to enjoy great tasting food everywhere I go. [Note the change to the present tense in the first part of the sentence, which agrees with the tense in the second part of the sentence.]
---My musical career has taken me all over the world and I have been fortunate to enjoy great tasting food everywhere I went. [The word "so" is superlative, thus I deleted it from the sentence. Changing from "I've gone" to "went" brings both sides of the sentence into tense agreement and eliminates the use of a 'helping verb' for the third time in the same sentence.]
---I am fortunate that everywhere my musical career takes me I enjoy great tasting food. [A streamlined (less wordy) sentence that says the same thing without tense issues.]
I hope this helps!
Will D
Enterprise AL
http://www.notagz.com
2006-09-03 13:42:24 · answer #2 · answered by Will D 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
"My musical career has taken me all over the world, and I have been so fortunate to enjoy great tasting food everywhere I`ve gone." Is correct. It`s all in the past tense.
2006-09-07 01:45:39 · answer #3 · answered by The BudMiester 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It should be the second: "My musical career has taken me all over the world, and I have been so fortunate to enjoy great tasting food everywhere I've gone."
The tense of the first part of the sentence should match the tense of every other part. IE: has taken - have been - have gone.
If you wanted to use the first one, it should say: "My musical career takes me all over the world, and I am so fortunate to enjoy great tasting food everywhere I go."
2006-09-03 15:35:31 · answer #4 · answered by autumnfaerie8 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I think the second one sounds better. You are using past tense "has taken" so it only seems right to use past tense in the second part of the sentence too. " have been"
Another example using present tense:
My musical career takes me all over the world and I am so fortunate to enjoy great tasting food. What do you think? I don't know the rules that apply, only what sounds better to me. Hope this will help you decide whether to use your first or second sentence.
2006-09-03 13:03:50 · answer #5 · answered by sweet.pjs1 5 · 1⤊ 1⤋
The second one is correct, but it would better to get rid of the passive voice. (when something is ahving something done to it instead of Doing something. i.e. has taken)
Try: My musical career allowed me to travel all over the world and to enjoy great tasting food from several diferent cultures.
Or: My musical career allowed me to travel all over the world. As a result, I have been fortunate enough to enjoy great tasting food everywhere I have been.
2006-09-03 15:14:18 · answer #6 · answered by Mommy-of-Twins 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
They are actually both correct, but the "food enjoying" has a different reference point in each. In the second sentence, by being past tense, the food enjoying is specifically referring to the music career trips. It's actually making a very precise statement: you DID TASTE great food when you WERE ON your music trips. The first is making a statement that is more generally true. you DO TASTE great food everywhere and one particular instance of this WAS on your music trips.
2006-09-03 13:30:21 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
it should read: "my musical career has taken me all over the world and i have been so fortunate to have enjoyed great tasting food everywhere i have gone."
every verb must follow tense. in this case you are using past tense.
2006-09-03 13:01:07 · answer #8 · answered by normal_cody 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
The seond is correct. You are talking about where you have been in the past, so you enjoyed the food in the past. The first version can be taken to mean you used to travel all over the world (the past tense), but now (present tense) you enjoy great food - but it's all in your home town.
The basic rule is called "Sequence of Tenses"
2006-09-03 13:01:15 · answer #9 · answered by dollhaus 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
well, in the 1st one, you say your career has taken, meaning in the past, and then you say you are lucky to enjoy, meaning present. maybe instead of saying so fortunate, you could say, extremely fortunate, or "as a benefit of my career in music, i have been all over the world and have been given the opportunity to experience great tasting food."or go with what you have and add that it.. "has given me the chance to enjoy great tasting food in the many places i have traveled." just a th ought.
2006-09-03 13:18:55 · answer #10 · answered by loveboatcaptain 5 · 0⤊ 2⤋