Multiple choice option [We...the car for 6 months when.....]

[sb70012]

We …… the car for 6 months when we discovered it ……..

a)owned_stolen
b)had owned_stealing
c)had owned_was stolen
d)owned_had been stolen (Answer Key)

Hello again,

I think this test is not standard too.
can option "c" be correct too?
What's your opinion about this test?

Source: exam sheets
Thank you.

 

[bhaisahab]

We …… the car for 6 months when we discovered it ……..

a)owned_stolen
b)had owned_stealing
c)had owned_was stolen
d)owned_had been stolen (Answer Key)

Hello again,

I think this test is not standard too.
can option "c" be correct too?
What's your opinion about this test?

Source: exam sheets
Thank you.

I would use "had owned - had been".

 

[engee30]

Same here. I'd go even further and say that the key to this particular exercise is actually wrong.

 

[MikeNewYork]

Same here. I'd go even further and say that the key to this particular exercise is actually wrong.

I think this is a terrible question. The main problem is that there are two possible scenarios:

1. This car was owned by a couple. After 6 months of ownership, somebody stole the car.
2. This car was owned by a couple. After having the car for 6 months, the couple learned that it was a stolen car.

In the first case, the ownership preceded the stealing; in the second case the stealing preceded the ownership.

 

[sb70012]

Thank you Mike. :up:
I hate it when our teachers prepare exam sheets with these senseless tests. Unfortunately it is something common in nonnative English countries. I wish our teachers were native English speaker so that we wouldn't get confused with these
bad tests.
Thanks everybody. (Sorry if I sometimes ask these non standard test. I have to do so in order to know which is standard and which is not)
Regards :up:

 

[engee30]

I think this is a terrible question. The main problem is that there are two possible scenarios:

1. This car was owned by a couple. After 6 months of ownership, somebody stole the car.
2. This car was owned by a couple. After having the car for 6 months, the couple learned that it was a stolen car.

In the first case, the ownership preceded the stealing; in the second case the stealing preceded the ownership.

What I don't like about the answer key that is supposed to be correct is that it tells us about a period of ownership through the use of the preposition for. To me, such use calls for a perfect tense (the same goes for since in the similar sense of duration). The only contexts I can think of that disallow the use of a perfect tense when for is applied are these:

(talking about a length of time that I'm going to spend somewhere in the immediate future)
The plan is that I'm staying with you for two weeks.
as opposed to:
I have been staying wth you for two weeks (now).

(talking about a past situation with no relevance to a present situation)
I stayed with you for two weeks. Don't you remember?
as opposed to:
I had been staying with you for two weeks when I found out my car had been stolen (action) / was stolen (state).

I get your point MikeNewYork though.