Grammar Tenses

[Mlngvt]

Dear teacher,
All are incorrect, aren't they? Please help me.
" Susan...........as a nurse for 3 years before her marriage."
a. has worked
b. has been working
c. worked
d. is working

Thanks very much.

[Guest]

Can you identify the tense (or aspect) of each choice? If you aren't sure, try

http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/tenses/tense_frames.htm

Do you think that you need past tense or present tense?

[Guest]

if there is no "before her marriage" I easily choose the present perfect.

"Susan has worked as a nurse for 3 years"
But "before her marriage" made me confused. I don't know which tense to choose.
Please help me to clarify it. Thanks.

[Alan]

Hi,

The important thing to remember is the sequence or order of tenses or times.

Susan has worked as a nurse for 3 years is fine because we are describing the period from then to now and the tense is Present Perfect.

If you want to describe two times - one before and one after, you need two tenses. So we have:

Susan worked as a nurse for 3 years. (First time)

Susan got married. (Second time)

Both the above are in the Past Simple when they are separate sentences but when we put them together with the conjunction before/after, we have to show the two times with two different tenses:

Susan had worked (Past Perfect) as a nurse before she got(Past Simple) married (her marriage).

After Susan had worked as a nurse for 3 years, she got married.

Hope this helps.

Alan
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Guy Fawkes Night for You

[Mlngvt]

Dear teacher,
Your explanation is perfectly clear. But, but in my work I have only to choose one in four choices. Which one is better or all are incorrect?
Please have a look at it again. Thanks.

[Alan]

Hi Mlngvt,

If you have to make a choice, option C seems the most acceptable.

Alan
_________________
English as a Foreign Language
You can read my EFL story Your Choice

[Mlngvt]

Thank you, teacher.
You are very kind.