By Modals, Conversations

JTT: "The possibility started yesterday. It therefore started in the past." But it has not come to fruition. It can have no past tense because nothing has past, ie. nothing has finished. How curious. A possibility has no past? Maybe I misremembered the conversation with Casi: Casi: I hear you...

Thanks. Your original 1 and 2 are "mixed" stuctures: "would" mixed with "can". These are possible in casual conversations. Some people do speak that way. However, I recommend learning to recognize it when you hear it, but not "mixing" when you speak or write -- at least not until you gain more...

"would" usually implies a conditional, even if it's not stated explicitly. The standard versions of these four are: 1. That would be cool if you could do that. 2. It would be nice of you if you could do that. 3. That will be cool if you can do that. 4. It will be nice of you if you can do...

All correct. Look at the list again. With "if" statements, "could" is possible for both present and past in the "if" clause. But remember that "could" is a substitute for "may" in the case of the first two in the present. If you want to express that she is able to go (to the party), you will...

You and your classmate don't seem to have any standard by which both of you agree to measure influence. Will it be the number of words related to each? Will it be the most frequently used words? The most frequently used words in everyday conversation? The most frequently used words in formal...

Dear teachers, Would you please have a look at my exercise? Complete the following conversation using the correct tense. KIM : This is the first time I have eaten / I am eating (eat) snails. YOU : I hate them ! I ate (eat) snail for the first and last time when we went (go) to a very...

The idiom is "have got" in both American and British English. It is a purely idiomatic alternate for "have" and is not much used except in the present tense. That is, "have got" is the present tense of this idiom, even though "get" is the present tense form of "to get", and the past is "got". ...

Some words, not only verbs, that are used a lot in speaking, have one weak sound and one strong sound. Weak forms are used in 'connected speech', that is, when you are having a normal, everyday conversation or when they are in the middle of a sentence. For example, the weak form of the verb...

hi bubu - I've been away for a few days.. I guess you just want this proof-reading? I don't think it needs much alteration. I'm assuming it is meant to serve as a book-review? I've made suggested alterations and annotated them in brackets. "This is one of those books intended to while away a...

You can use Dare with TO. Dare can be used in two ways: 1. as an ordinary verb (followed by the infinitive with TO) In this case it is more common in negative sentences: I didn't dare to tell her what had really happened. My friends dared me to drink the entire glass all at once. 2. as a modal...