Tagged Questions

3
votes
2answers
79 views

Wording an 'If-Then' Statement Tense

I need help phrasing the last part of this conditional sentence (assume I can't change the first conditional statement): If I died tomorrow, I would have wanted to go skydiving. or If I ...
-2
votes
3answers
93 views

Should I insert is/was/were after an 'if'? [closed]

I have the following sentence: if the foo is/was/were a bar and the baz truck a qux, how does the working of a baz relate to coaching? Should it be is/was/were? Searching the internet just ...
4
votes
4answers
2k views

“If I didn't have” vs. “if I hadn't had”

Can someone please tell me if these sentences are correct? I prefer number one. Here I am trying to talk about a past condition that didn't actually happen because the person had the example sentences ...
7
votes
3answers
4k views

“It would be better if you drink/drank all the water”

Which one of the following is grammatically correct? It would be better if you drink all the water. It would be better if you drank all the water. The question is, obviously, about the use ...
2
votes
4answers
996 views

Is “if they would do something” correct English?

We were discussing if the following sentence would be proper English: I asked them if they would do me a favour. (A) The meaning is that I am referring to a point in the past where I asked ...
1
vote
3answers
2k views

Would be glad to

I was writing an email and faced the following situation: I am coming to Oxford this summer. If you are still around, I would be glad to hang out with you. Now normally we don't construct the ...
1
vote
2answers
2k views

Usage of “would have been”

In the movie "A Walk to remember" Jimmie's father says the following to his son-in-law who got into medical school. Actually Jimmie is dead when he says, We are proud of you, son. Jimmie would ...
3
votes
3answers
355 views

3rd conditional plus 2nd conditional?

"If you had seen him as a child, you would agree that he is extraordinary." In this sentence, changing the past perfect to simple past strikes me as wrong, and changing the "would agree" to "would ...
1
vote
4answers
405 views

What to use for hypothetically completed future actions

I was talking to a friend where I had to make a hypothetical statement about an activity that was completed in the future. So I came up with the following statements. If he continued college, he ...
0
votes
2answers
442 views

Correct tense form after “if”

Let's say I use a misunderstood word in direct speech. After that, which is correct to use from the following? I can explain, if you don't catch the meaning. I can explain, if you haven't caught the ...
1
vote
3answers
806 views

Is “even if…” followed by present or future tense?

Is it correct to say: even if only James Bond will benefit from... or even if only James Bond benefits from...
6
votes
5answers
1k views

“If I knew you're coming I wouldn't have come”

Is the statement If I knew you're coming I wouldn't have come correct? Should we use If I had known you're coming, I wouldn't have come instead? Please consider American-British ...
7
votes
5answers
521 views

What's the tense for repetitive past action?

In English, "would" usually denotes a conditional voice. "If I were sleepy, I would go to bed." But I've caught myself using it to denote repetitive or habitual past action. "On Thursdays, we would ...
2
votes
4answers
1k views

A conditional sentence with present perfect

Is it correct to say: If you have finished it by then, I'll come and take it. thus using the present perfect in the "if" clause to mean the future instead of the present?
1
vote
3answers
1k views

Which tense after 'would I… if… ?'

I am struggling on a sentence here. Let me show u what I come up with; Would I fail if I won't study? In this sentence I am trying to indicate a possibility but I am not sure if I use this part ...
45
votes
4answers
3k views

How do the tenses in English correspond temporally to one another?

Non-native speakers often get confused about what the tenses in English mean. With input from some of the folk here I've put together a diagram that I hope will provide some clarity on the matter. I ...
8
votes
2answers
752 views

“Will have” vs. “Would have”

By the end of the year, I would have attended this school for five years. Of course, the "most" correct way of writing this would be: By the end of the year, I will have attended this school ...