had been ascertained

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "had been ascertained" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when indicating that something has been determined or established in the past, often in a formal or legal context. Example: "The facts of the case had been ascertained before the trial began."

✓ Grammatically correct

Science

News & Media

Encyclopedias

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

24 human-written examples

… It had been ascertained that the men … opened two safes and made a clean sweep of both".

The New York Times

The diagnosis of ICUAW was made on clinical grounds after the patients had been awaken from sedation and their orientation and cooperation had been ascertained, following a protocol described previously [11, 19].

Annals of Intensive Care

Censusing and successive removals continued until the ranks of all individuals had been ascertained (13 33 days), at which point the nest and remaining occupants were collected and frozen (−20°C).

Plosone

The zygosities of the adult and child twins had been ascertained using minisatellite typing with 5 minisatellite probes, and HLA typing performed using Southern blot hybridisation with radiolabelled HLA-DRB and HLA-DQB probes, as described in previous studies on the samples [13], [27].

Plosone

Because difficulty in swallowing is an important clinical symptom, it was used in the diagnosis of the disease; before the 1980s, when poor medical conditions prevailed, the older oesophageal cancer patients who were diagnosed by village doctors or suspected of having died of EC had been ascertained by this method.

Plosone

The Swedes consisted of 774 case and 755 control females from a breast cancer study [24] who had been ascertained for place of residence in 1993 1995, and 113 male population samples of ethnic Swedes mainly from eastern Sweden but without further geographic information [4].

Plosone

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

36 human-written examples

In general, two big problems with Ecstasy have been ascertained.

The New York Times - Magazine

This matter has been ascertained to be of nonbiological origin.

Encyclopedia Britannica

The administration should have held off until the true impact of its rules could have been ascertained.

The New York Times

It is difficult to guess how well the relationships among these characters would have been ascertained without Mr. Barenboim's prologue.

The New York Times - Arts

Due diligence is expected of the buyer to ensure that all relevant facts regarding the acquisition target have been ascertained prior to consummation of the purchase.

Encyclopedia Britannica

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "had been ascertained" when you want to emphasize that a fact or piece of information was established at some point in the past, often after a process of investigation or verification.

Common error

Avoid using "had been ascertained" when the context requires a simpler past tense ("was ascertained") if the timing of the ascertainment is not crucial to the meaning.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "had been ascertained" functions as a past perfect passive construction. It describes an action (ascertaining) that was completed before a specific point in the past, with the subject of the sentence being the recipient of that action. As Ludwig AI confirms, it's grammatically correct.

Expression frequency: Common

Frequent in

Science

74%

News & Media

15%

Encyclopedias

4%

Less common in

Formal & Business

0%

Wiki

0%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "had been ascertained" is a grammatically sound and commonly used past perfect passive construction, as per Ludwig AI. It's primarily employed in formal and scientific contexts to convey that a fact or piece of information was established before a specific point in the past. While alternatives like "had been determined" or "had been confirmed" exist, "had been ascertained" emphasizes the process of investigation or verification. It's important to use the correct tense and avoid overcomplicating sentences when simpler alternatives are more appropriate. Ludwig's examples showcase the phrase's usage in reputable sources like PlosOne and The New York Times.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

had been determined

Replaces "ascertained" with a more general term for finding something out.

had been established

Suggests that something was firmly proven or set.

had been discovered

Implies that something was found unexpectedly.

had been confirmed

Indicates that something was verified to be true.

had been verified

Similar to "confirmed", but emphasizes the process of checking something.

had been found

A simpler way to say that something was located or revealed.

had been identified

Suggests that something specific was recognized or distinguished.

had been figured out

An informal way of saying something was understood after some thought.

had been learned

Emphasizes the process of gaining knowledge about something.

had been understood

Focuses on the comprehension of a concept or situation.

FAQs

How can I use "had been ascertained" in a sentence?

You can use "had been ascertained" to indicate that a fact or detail was established or determined at some point in the past. For instance, "It "had been ascertained" that the suspect was in the vicinity of the crime scene."

What phrases are similar to "had been ascertained"?

Alternatives to "had been ascertained" include phrases like "had been determined", "had been established", or "had been confirmed". The choice depends on the specific nuance you want to convey.

Is it correct to say "was ascertained" instead of "had been ascertained"?

Both "was ascertained" and "had been ascertained" can be correct, depending on the context. "Was ascertained" implies a simple past action, while "had been ascertained" indicates that the ascertainment occurred before another point in time.

What's the difference between "had been ascertained" and "already been ascertained"?

"Had been ascertained" indicates that something was found out before a specific time in the past. Adding "already" as in "already been ascertained" emphasizes that the discovery happened even earlier or sooner than expected.