13
votes
Can “was not ᴠᴇʀʙing” and “will not ᴠᴇʀʙ” ever be exact equivalents in reported speech?
The short answer is that no, they do not mean the same thing.
The first with an inflection of the progressive construction be playing is a simple statement of the evidentiary future, but the second ...
- 137k
7
votes
What's quasi-modal be?
The key thing to remember about “modal” constructions is that modality refers to operating in both the epistemic mode of predictions and possibilities as well as the deontic mode of obligations and ...
- 137k
5
votes
Accepted
Can “was not ᴠᴇʀʙing” and “will not ᴠᴇʀʙ” ever be exact equivalents in reported speech?
This is reported speech, where we backshift tenses. Backshifting happens when a verb tense is shifted back to a past form in reported speech.
What was said by John: "I am hungry." In ...
- 12.1k
4
votes
Accepted
Deontic “must”, “have to” and “had to”
(1) How and when did have to express the sense of obligation? What void did it fill?
Have to is an example of what's called a Periphrastic Modal (periphrastic is a technical term for 'paraphrased', ...
- 109k
4
votes
Deontic “must”, “have to” and “had to”
"Must" is what's known as a "defective" verb, or one that list lacking particular conjugations. "Must" is the only form of the verb; it doesn't change for third versus first person, and it has no past ...
- 5,025
4
votes
English Conditionals and "would"
Will and would are rare in the protases (if clauses) of conditional constructions. They are acceptable in only a few circumstances:
In actualization conditionals when will/would has a volitive sense, ...
- 69.1k
4
votes
Max couldn’t go out after dark. <permission at a past time?>
"Could" is used also as a modal for conveying the idea of permission in the past.
CoGEL¹ § 4.52 can/could three major meanings of these modals can be distinguished.
(a) POSSIBILITY […]
(b) ...
- 23.9k
3
votes
What's quasi-modal be?
I
What's quasi-modal "be"? It is not a traditional grammar term.
"Quasi modal" has to be just another term for what is called "modal idiom" in A Comprehensive Grammar ...
- 23.9k
3
votes
Max couldn’t go out after dark. <permission at a past time?>
It is the semantics that play a role here. The collocation go out after dark makes it more clear that it is about permission rather than having the ability to do so. The same explanation applies to ...
- 65.5k
3
votes
English Conditionals and "would"
English modals are subtle beasts, and nearly all forms can and do occur in different parts of conditionals, but with nuanced meaning. Obligatory crosslink.
If you would
Remember that If you would X ...
- 137k
2
votes
Accepted
He must regret his decision vs He must be regretting his decision
To answer your last question first, it will always be interpreted as having a progressive meaning, that doesn't change. Sometimes, though, that distinction isn't very meaningful in describing certain ...
- 4,760
2
votes
Accepted
English Conditionals and "would"
is there then no way to describe "a hypothetical situation in which I would want to change my address" as conditional?
Yes, there is a way. To express a hypothetical present time situation, use the ...
2
votes
Will/shall - I _____ never go there. With reason
A relatively small subset of English speakers in Southern England in the 19th century and early 20th centuries, including the upper class, used I shall and you/he/she/they will as a default for future ...
- 90.3k
2
votes
Max couldn’t go out after dark. <permission at a past time?>
All modals have at least two meanings,
the Deontic reading, which deals with social and behavioral norms, including giving and withholding permission, obligations, and taboos. Examples
You must be ...
- 109k
2
votes
"Will have heard by now" sounds like bad usage to me; what is your opinion?
"Will" can refer to the future but it can also refer to what is likely
will modal verb (LIKELY)
(also 'll)
used to refer to what is likely:
That'll be Scott at the door.
That'll be his ...
- 807
2
votes
Is "Could you help me move these boxes?" interpreted as deontic or dynamic when it comes to the modality families?
I assume you're talking about a situation in which you're using this question to ask someone else to help you.
According to Huddleston & Pullum (2002), such questions are requests, indirectly ...
- 19.6k
1
vote
Accepted
Could "It needn't have been Jill that wrote the note" be interpreted other than deontic?
In the terminology of Huddleston & Pullum, there are three forms of modality: epistemic, deontic, and dynamic. Following their rules around negation, we can roughly rephrase your sentence to use ...
- 19.6k
1
vote
Could "It needn't have been Jill that wrote the note" be interpreted other than deontic?
Let's think about what the sentence is saying and then what it is doing.
It is equivalent (in truth value) to the following propositions:
The statement "Jill wrote the note" is not ...
- 11.4k
1
vote
Is this tense usage correct, "you'll continue acting"?
John Lawler got it correct in the comments: if you'll continue acting like ... is a request.
Quoting his comment:
As long as acting like this is something the speaker wants you to do, then it makes ...
1
vote
Must realise VS Must have realised
The model answer is quite correct. The speaker is saying that given what he knows Emily knows, she has no alternative but to realise she has made a mistake. In that sense, she does "have to" realise.
...
- 3,739
1
vote
Meaning of "will" in "I will be unable to meet with you tomorrow as arranged"
Barring exterior cues to the contrary, this is the epistemic modality not the deontic one. Therefore it is simple likelihood not willful prohibition.
I wouldn’t read too much into the old chestnut ...
- 137k
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