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It was vs it would have been in the context

Hello teachers! which one is correct here using "was" or " would have been", and how do they differ in the meaning if both are correct?

For example:

It was/ would have been fun of the heart attachment if the fire of love had started equally, neither you nor I would have found repose

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  • Sorry, that phrase is hard to understand. Did you mean if instead of of? What is this sentence supposed to express? Please edit some context into your question.
    – user22427
    Apr 24, 2019 at 15:25

1 Answer 1

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"Would have been" is normally counterfactual, describing something that didn't happen, for an explicit or implicit reason. "Was" is past tense

  • It was nice to see you yesterday, I'm glad I went
  • It would have been nice to see you yesterday, I'm sorry I didn't go

It's not quite clear what your example sentence is supposed to mean, but "if the fire of love had started equally" and "would have found" implies it is counterfactual: so you need "would have been".

I'm not sure what "fun of the heart attachment" is intended to mean, perhaps "the joy of the romantic attachment" or "the joy of the affair of the heart":

Perhaps:

It would have been a joyous affair of the heart if the fire of love had started equally

But "neither you nor I would have found repose" seems a contradiction: unequal love doesn't normally make calm!

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  • Thanks, but I asked the difference in my context Apr 24, 2019 at 14:11
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    It's the same meaning. Also: are you sure your context sentence is correct "It was fun of the heart attachment ..." isn't grammatical.
    – jonathanjo
    Apr 24, 2019 at 14:14
  • What's the reason it's ungrammatical? On what basis do you say so? Is it grammatical " I am sorry if I have offended you"? Apr 24, 2019 at 14:18
  • No my friend, certainly not offended! I expanded my answer, hope it's helpful.
    – jonathanjo
    Apr 24, 2019 at 14:42
  • I mean "neither you nor I would have found repose" was fun of the heart's attachment if the fire of love had started equally 🤗 :) Apr 24, 2019 at 15:38

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