Is this sentence correct? "I found out that there are two problems?Shouldn't are be replaced by were? Thanks.

Answer 1

Do the problems still exist? If the problems still exist then it is "ARE" and if the problems no longer exist then it is "WERE".

Try it this way....

there are two problems. (The problems exist.)
there were two problems. (The problems have been resolved)

The fact that you found out about it doesn't change anything.

Answer 2

Not necessarily because even though you found out about the problems doesn't mean that they have been corrected. If the problems have been corrected, then they are in the past and you should go ahead and use "were" because it is a past tense verb. But, if the problems still exist at this very moment, stay with "are" because this verb is in the present tense.

Now to complicate things more, there are English teachers who insist that since your first clause: "I found out" is in the past tense that your second clause must agree with the first, and therefore this would require "were."

In my opinion, you can make a case for either tense, but I'm not your teacher and the one who is grading your work.

Answer 3

What mega408 and pantherempress said is true, but this is only half of the answer. In a subordinate clause introduced by "that" one is allowed to use any tense that suits the reality. Therefore, one can say "I found out that there are/were/had been/will be etc two problems."

Answer 4

I believe it would be both, are is present tense, were is past tense. It depends if its happening now or already happened and one is just learning of the problems.

Answer 5

Were is past, if the problems were fixed then okay. Are means they are current and still not fixed.

Answer 6

Mega408 is correct on this

Answer 7

You are right.

'Are' has to replaced by 'Were'