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I thought "it did not until now" is natural and not wrong, but my friend keeps saying it is wrong and it should be "it has not" because "did" as past simple tense and "until now" with the sense of present just don't work together. which is correct? and which one would you use in real life?

Example

"They told me it usually appears within a few hours on the student portal, but it did not until now"

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  • Welcome to ELL! Your version certainly looks possible. However, the English language is very dependent on context. Whether a phrase is correct or not often depends on surrounding text. Please give a complete sentence showing how you wish to use the phrase. Thanks.
    – chasly - supports Monica
    Commented Jan 7, 2021 at 9:53
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    the full sentence is: "they told me it usually appears within a few hours on the student portal, but it did not until now"
    – Tommmmm
    Commented Jan 7, 2021 at 11:20
  • Thanks, I've edited that into your question. I'm British and this would not be correct for me. However it might be correct in US English. Let's see what our American friends say.
    – chasly - supports Monica
    Commented Jan 7, 2021 at 11:55

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"They told me it usually appears within a few hours on the student portal, but it did not until now"

I can answer for British English. I can't say that this is definitely wrong - it is certainly understandable. However in British English we would typically say:

"They told me it usually appears within a few hours on the student portal, but it has not (hasn't) until now"

There are differences between British and American English wrt the use of present perfect. Let's see what others have to say.

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