had been granted

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "had been granted" is correct and usable in written English.
You can use it to refer to something that has already been given to someone in the past. For example: "The student had been granted a scholarship for his academic excellence."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Science

Wiki

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

60 human-written examples

Within weeks, the request had been granted.

The New Yorker

Some had been granted British citizenship.

The Guardian

Kanyinda had been granted his freedom.

The New York Times - Magazine

The woman's request for medically induced abortion had been granted.

Independent

Levinson said a beta blocker exemption had been granted.

The New York Times - Sports

No new rights to citizenship had been granted, they said.

The Economist

(Gabriel Mejia had been granted legal status in the US).

The Guardian

You'd want to know why it had been granted.

The Guardian - Sport

Borodin had been granted asylum to stay in Britain.

The Guardian

If you had been granted that ability, you might take care to hang on to it.

The Economist

Until then, the family had been granted extensions of its previous contract.

The New York Times

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "had been granted" to clearly indicate that a permission, right, or privilege was given at some point in the past and is relevant to a current situation. Ensure the context makes the timing clear.

Common error

Avoid using "had been granted" when a simpler past tense like "was granted" or "received" would suffice. Overusing the past perfect can make writing sound unnecessarily complex.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "had been granted" functions as a passive perfect construction, indicating that someone or something received permission, a right, or a privilege at a time prior to a specific point in the past. Ludwig confirms that this construction is grammatically correct.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

47%

Science

35%

Wiki

9%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

2%

Formal & Business

1%

Reference

1%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "had been granted" is a grammatically sound and frequently used construction in English. It serves to clearly denote that something—a permission, right, or privilege—was given at a point prior to a specific moment in the past. As Ludwig AI confirms, it adheres to standard grammar rules and enjoys widespread use across diverse sources. Its formality is neutral, making it suitable for various writing contexts, especially where precision and the sequence of events are important. When employing this phrase, ensure that the context sufficiently indicates the timeframe and relationship between the granting and subsequent events. Common alternatives, like "had been allowed", "had received", and "had obtained", can offer subtle differences in meaning.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

had been allowed

Focuses more on permission or allowance, suggesting that something was permitted rather than formally given.

had been permitted

Indicates that permission was given for something to occur.

had been authorized

Emphasizes the official approval or sanctioning of something.

had been given

A more general term indicating that something was received or bestowed.

had been awarded

Highlights the act of formally bestowing something, often as a reward or honor.

had received

Focuses on the act of obtaining or being given something.

had obtained

Emphasizes the act of gaining possession of something.

had secured

Suggests that something was obtained through effort or negotiation.

had earned

Highlights that something was deserved through effort or merit.

had been bequeathed

Implies that something was formally passed down, typically through a will or inheritance.

FAQs

How is "had been granted" used in a sentence?

The phrase "had been granted" indicates that something was given or permitted at a point in the past. For example, "The company "had been granted" a license to operate" shows that the license was given before the current time of reference.

What are alternatives to using "had been granted"?

Alternatives include "had been allowed", "had received", or "had obtained", depending on the specific nuance you want to convey.

When should I use "had been granted" instead of "was granted"?

"Had been granted" is appropriate when discussing a past action that occurred before another point in the past. "Was granted" is used for a simple past action. For example, "He applied for the permit, and it "had been granted" before the project started."

Is it correct to say "has been granted" instead of "had been granted"?

"Has been granted" indicates something given recently and continuing to the present, while ""had been granted"" refers to something given in the past before another past event. Choose the tense based on the timeline you want to convey.