The snowfall got heavier in the early afternoon but had stopped by the evening.
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1Because the stopping was prior to evening.– BillJMar 19, 2018 at 7:43
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2 Answers
(I am by no means a good English speaker).
"The snowfall got heavier in the early afternoon but had stopped by the evening".
Because the writer wanted to emphasize the fact that snowfall had stopped by the evening and still not falling. It is a full stop of snowfall.
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1Why the mixing of simple past and perfect past? What is conveyed here that wouldn't be by "...but stopped by the evening"?– Jim MackMar 19, 2018 at 3:04
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1It allows the narrative present time to be set as the evening, after the snow stopped. Or after the snow had stopped. When you've got two times in one sentence, you may or may not want to call attention to that fact. Mar 19, 2018 at 3:10
Had stopped by the evening means that the snowfall stopped in the late afternoon, before the evening began. If you say it stopped by the evening, the snowfall stopped later, when the evening had begun.
