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He invited Mr. Smith to the party that day.
He had invited Mr. Smith to the party that day.

Please tell me the difference and which of the two is grammatical?

user244722
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  • Thanks, but be aware that "to party" is a common slang expression, especially here in Southern California. "It's the weekend! Let's party!!" – Andrew Dec 03 '17 at 18:26

1 Answers1

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Both are grammatical though they mean different things. (Note that "party" used as a verb is much rarer than "party" used as a noun so both sentences are unusual.)

The first sentence simply says that the invitation was made at some past instant.

The second sentence says that the invitation was made at some past instant that preceded some implicitly understood past event.

Jeff Morrow
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  • could you please elucidate your explanation a little.. ?? – user244722 Dec 03 '17 at 18:05
  • The example sentences are not the best possible examples for a number of reasons. "He married her" simply describes a marriage that happened in the past. "When he met her, he had already married her by proxy." Now we are describing a marriage that occurred BEFORE a different past event, in this case the meeting of bride and groom. – Jeff Morrow Dec 03 '17 at 19:12