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Can I use "had" the way I have in the first sentence? Or is the second sentence correct?

(1) By the time he had descended the tree and brought the cat up, the squirrel had made a wall of acorns, and the bird had fled the scene.

(2) By the time he had descended the tree and brought the cat up, the squirrel made a wall of acorns, and the bird fled the scene.

Thanks.

sam
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  • Either use had in every instance, as in the first sentence, or just once, as in the second sentence. Both versions are grammatical; it's a matter of style and personal preference. (You may also find that one version better conveys your specific intent.) – Jason Bassford Oct 13 '19 at 15:42

1 Answers1

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Its a bit of a strange sentence but... had works for me in 1.

I am not sure if this is what you mean but, I assume [he] descended the tree, grabbed the cat and took it back up the tree? I think adding "back" will make this clearer for the reader, if correct.

Also, I do not think you need the 'Oxford' comma... before the 'and':

"By the time he had descended the tree and brought the cat [back] up, the squirrel had made a wall of acorns and the bird had fled the scene."

Sentence 2 does not really work without the 'had'.

I know a good Pest Controller if you continue to have problems with the squirrel...

NeilB
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