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Once I said 'It was the first year when the tour program began'

but after saying that, a question has arisen in my mind.

Because they are still offering people that program in a certain period of every year.

So, I think I should have used 'has begun', like 'It was the first year when the tour program has begun?'

Which expression is better for this situation?

Is the verb 'begin' suitable for the word 'tour program'?

and I am wondering if all these texts are understandable, or not.

Thank you very much.

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  • It was the first year of the tour program
    – mplungjan
    Nov 1, 2017 at 6:38
  • Does the it of your sentence refer to the year (i.e. 2012 was the year that the program began)? If this is your intended meaning then you don't need the word first (unless the program began again later), and the verb must be began not has begun.
    – Shoe
    Nov 1, 2017 at 8:18

1 Answer 1

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"Began" is the correct form. They may be continuing to offer the program, but they are not continuing to begin it. Without any context, the sentence as you said it does sound odd, but not because of the form of the verb. If "first" is referring to the first of the years that the program has been offered, then of course it began to be offered during that year, not during some later year. So, absent context, it seems to say that the first year was the first year, an empty truism.

Had you said "That was the first of the years that the program was offered," that would imply that the program is no longer offered. If the program were still being offered, then it would be correct to say "That was the first of the years that the program has been offered" because the offering (not the beginning) is continuing into the present.

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  • Thank you a lot. I got it. Your explain is clear and easy to understand.
    – D. Min
    Nov 9, 2017 at 11:38

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