Mega Verb Phrase: "would have had to have been eating"

Just trying to get my head around this long verb phrase; can anyone help me break it down into its elements?

Working backwards, I can see that "have been eating" is the present perfect continuous form.

Presumably, the preceding "had to" is just a periphrastic modal meaning the same as "must".

What, then, is the "would have" element? A conditional modal? But if so, it surely wouldn't fit the ordererd pattern for verb groups: MODAL, PERFECT (have), PROGRESSIVE (be), PASSIVE (be), MAIN VERB, because "had to" is a modal as well. And you can't have two modals, in a verb group, surely? Also, where (in the above pattern) does the "have" that follows "would" fit in?

Many thanks for your time.

Alex

Anonymous wrote:

Just trying to get my head around this long verb phrase; can anyone help me break it down into its elements? Working backwards, I can see that "have been eating" is the present perfect continuous form. Presumably, the preceding "had to" is just a periphrastic modal meaning the same as "must". What, then, is the "would have" element? A conditional modal? But if so, it surely wouldn't fit the ordererd pattern for verb groups: MODAL, PERFECT (have), PROGRESSIVE (be), PASSIVE (be), MAIN VERB, because "had to" is a modal as well. And you can't have two modals, in a verb group, surely? Also, where (in the above pattern) does the "have" that follows "would" fit in? Many thanks for your time. Alex

Simply put, it's just "too much verb".  Simplify it to "he would have had to be eating" or "he would have to have been eating" and I think you'll be able to identify the elements more easily.  My first example certainly flows better off my tongue than the second one.

Alex,

Here's the mistake.

because "had to" is a modal as well

It's sometimes called a 'semi-modal', because it is like the modal must in meaning.  Nevertheless, its grammar is exactly the same as for any non-modal verb, like want, like, or prefer.

would have wanted to have seen
would have liked to have been invited
would have preferred to have been lying on a beach

would have + [past participle]  Modal perfect tense.
had   Past participle of to have.  The 'lexical' verb of the whole verb phrase.
to have been eating.  Infinitive.  Specifically, the perfect progressive infinitive.

CJ

It would seem that you'd use the past perfect form "had to" when the action preceded another action.  Example: "The movie started at 8:00, but my stupid brother-in-law booked a table in a restaurant for 7:00.  To get to the movie on time, we would have had to have been eating at 7:00, not just sitting down at our table."  Here, the eating precedes seeing the movie.

In the case of "would have to have been," it seems that this follows another action rather than precedes it.  Example: "You would have to have been a fool to invest in internet stocks after the crash in 2001."  Here, the crash comes first and the investing second.

I'm confident someone will point out any errors in my reasoning... . 

"Simply put, it's just "too much verb".  Simplify it to "he would have had to be eating" or "he would have to have been eating" and I think you'll be able to identify the elements more easily.  My first example certainly flows better off my tongue than the second one."

I think examples of answers, as mentioned above, are misleading and confusing.  I would prefer to use a clasical approach for your answer...

for example:  One could rather say,  " he had most likely/probably been eating when he vomited" ("he would have had to be eating") or "he must have been eating if he vomited".("he would have to have been eating").

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