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Let's say you didn't say what you have to say in a meeting, which took place in the past.(the idiom I decided to use is 'chicken out')

Then, your friend had told you this:

I thought you needed to say something, but it seemed you had chickened out

Is the past perfect verb tense usage + chicken out grammatical?

John Arvin
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3 Answers3

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Grammatically correct. However in the situation described, only the past tense is required

I thought you needed to say something, but it seemed you chickened out.

Or the perfect infinitive (note the change in the verb seem to he present, and the more active subject.)

I thought you needed to say something, but you seem to have chickened out

James K
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    That is right, editing – James K Mar 10 '18 at 14:18
  • (Excerpt)PRESENT INFINITIVE:"I thought you needed to say something, but you seem to have chickened out.''-on the flip side, CAN YOU SAY:''...but you seem you have chickened out''? – John Arvin Mar 10 '18 at 15:50
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    It is impossible to tell which is required. This usage depends on what a speaker wants to say, and not on grammar per se. – Lambie Mar 10 '18 at 17:16
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This sentence below depends on what you want to say: I thought you needed to say something, but it seemed you had chickened out.

"I thought" in the past, preceded by something farther back in the past, such as something occurring before the moment the meeting took place.

COMPARE that to: I thought you needed to say something, but it seemed you chickened out.

The chickening out and the "I thought" basically occurred at the same time, when the meeting took place.

Please note: The timeline issues with verb tenses are not only a matter of grammar. They are also conditioned by what a speaker wants to say and means to say about a situation that we, those who answer these questions, cannot determine. ELLers seem to have difficulty grasping that their actual intentions in saying something can be as important as the grammar.

1) I thought you needed to say something, but it seemed you had chickened out. [at that point in time]

2) I thought you needed to say something, but it seemed you have chickened out. [at this point in time]

3) I thought you needed to say something, but it seemed you chickened out. [then]

All three are valid, all three say something different about the reality of chickening out and the meeeting.

Lambie
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  • Hello again, thx for the answer. Your answers are very important for me as it confirms/secures the knowledge about the verb tenses usage that I've been studying, really great. As I've said, I'm aware of these tenses chronologically, I just want to confirm if phrasal verbs(such as chicken out) can be changed accordingly and are not 'fixed' if different tenses are used. In a nutshell, the answers here validates my question that phrasal verbs can be adjusted to relate to what verb tenses are being used, answered by the natives themselves. So Cheers! – John Arvin Mar 13 '18 at 14:57
  • @JohnArvin One last point: what I have said applies to any verb, not just phrasal ones. Glad to have been of help to you. – Lambie Mar 13 '18 at 15:37
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Yes, but only in a context where past perfect tense is appropriate. See: When is the past perfect exactly needed?

This context needs simple past tense because all three clauses happened at the same time:

I thought you needed to say something, but you chickened out.

This context uses past perfect tense, because "found out" and "realized" relate to the preceding event "had chickened out":

When I found out you hadn't said anything, I realized you had chickened out.

Paul Dexter
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