Online translator versus me. Whose translation is correct and why?

Question

I wrote the following sentences in my native language and translated them into English. I wonder if they are correct.

Yesterday, the participants of the club held a meeting. My friend and I had been planning to join the meeting but the friend had been held up at work, so I didn't go there without him.

I put my original sentences in an online-translator and it gave me this result:

Yesterday, the club members held a meeting. My friend and I were going to join the meeting, but the friend was late at work, so I didn't go there without him.

Who's right?

Answer 1

They are both grammatical.

The meaning in your version is clearer because held up is more clear and natural than late at.

Neither is the most natural or (in my opinion) the most effective style, but that is not always the best aim. Sometimes it’s better to be clear and to be happy that you have the ability to do so, instead of spending time and energy struggling at perfection.

I would probably write it like this:

My friend and I were going to go to yesterday’s club meeting, but he got held up at work and I decided not to go without him.

We don’t need the past perfect when the order of events can be made clear with the simple past and/or in other ways:

I ate breakfast, grabbed the backpack I bought last week and left the house.

The past continuous in my example shows that in the past (were), there was thought about the future relative to that time (going to).

This has a simplified explanation and example under “was going to”.