I never knew VS I’ve never known In the movie Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, Harry talks to a snake, “ I never knew my parents either.” (The snake was bred in captivity.) Why is simple past tense ,instead of present perfect tense, used here in this line? Harry doesn’t know who his parents are. Why does he use a sentence that refers to the past?

one or other VS one or the other Below two sentences are quoted from respectively Oxford Dictionary and Collins Dictionary. 1. You must ask one or other of your parents. 2. One or other of the two women was wrong. I wonder whether it would make a difference in terms of what the sentences mean, if we use "one or the other" instead of "one or other". Meanwhile, there's this sentence from the Merriam-Webster Dictionary. - One or the other of us will have to go.

Is this sentence grammatically correct? - It depends on... "It depends on my immediate director if I can get a promotion." I feel it's somehow incorrect but I can't tell why. Does this sentence make sense to a native speaker? Does it seem natural? I would rewrite this sentence as below: "Whether I can get a promotion depends on my immediate director." But l would love to know whether the original sentence is correct in formal written English.

Is this sentence correct? "I had not understood the problem until he explained it." This sentence was found in New Concept English II. "I had not understood the problem until he explained it." Meanwhile, there is another sentence - "I did not understand the problem until he had explained it ." Which sentence is correct?

"That's what you deserve" refers to something good or bad or both? "That's what you deserve." Does this sentence only refer to something bad? Can it be something good? If not, then what can be said instead when you congratulate on the recognition / award someone gets?

Can "besides" and "except for" be used interchangeably in these sentences? Below are two example sentences from the Oxford Dictionary. 1. I've got no family besides my parents. 2. I had nothing on except for my socks. If I switch "besides" and "except for", do they still mean the same as the original sentences? 1. I've got no family except for my parents. 2. I had nothing on besides my socks.

Is this a very awkward sentence? "Studying knowledge needs thinking again and again." This is a slogan from an advertisement. - study knowledge? - needs thinking?

Is this sentence correct: It was the most amazing experience I've ever had. It was the most amazing experience I've ever had. I am thinking whether it should "It was the most amazing experience I had ever had".