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I had been preparing for a tennis event since March, but it has been postponed until next year.

Question: Can "it has been postponed" be replaced with "was postponed" grammatically without changing its meaning?

One of my friends (Canadian) received this question from a Chinese learner, and she asked me for help.

user65163
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  • The difference is one of time-frame - you can say 'has now been postponed', but you can't say 'was now postponed' - it would have to be 'was then postponed' - it points further back in the past - is this clearer? – Leon Conrad Feb 08 '14 at 17:34

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'It was postponed until next year' does not give you the latest up-to-date position. It may have been changed again, since it was postponed, and is now going to be next month.

'It has been postponed until next year' conveys the message that it was postponed and, for the moment at least, it stays postponed until next year.

WS2
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