By Subjunctives, Simple past

Does English even have a past subjunctive? It was agreed six months ago that the house, come what may, was to be decorated inside and out before the end of June. "was" is identical in form to the simple past. So why do some people call it the past subjunctive?

My point is that many people say that "were" in these cases is the past subjunctive. I'm saying it's not, for the reasons I already gave. As for "if I had" (which was not the point of this thread originally, I just brought it up), that is the simple past. "Subjunctive" and "indicative" "simple...

If she was leaving, you would have heard about it. (indicative mood) If she were leaving, you would have heard about it. (subjunctive mood) These sentences mean the same thing. And... I don't think "If she were" is the past subjunctive. It's the irrealis....

If the main cause is in the simple past, the subordinating clause should be in a past tense as well. The only exception is general facts, truths: Here one Martin Behaim theorized that the world is round, link

D is the correct answer given in the exercise book where this question was derived. The question here is what attitude, state of mind or intent did the speaker want to convey? In the given sentence, if you think the speaker meant to express doubt about the success of the negotiation, then the...

The question here is what attitude, state of mind or intent did the speaker want to convey? In the given sentence, if you think the speaker meant to express doubt about the success of the negotiation, then the correct tense to use would be the past perfect to indicate an unreal situation in the...

I think "were" in "If I were you" is a subjunctive mood... It's exactly the same as the simple past, except for "to be" in the 1st and the 3rd person (sing.): "were" instead of "was".

1. Jenny talks as if she knows everything = Jenny talks like a person who knows everything ( but you aren't saying whether Jenny really knows everything or not) I agree. 2. Jenny talks as if she knew everything = Jenny talks like a person who knows everything, but she doesn't really know...

MrPedantic wrote: Anonymous wrote: 2. I think of it as a past subjunctive; but I wouldn't refer to it as such, because the next question would be "how can I distinguish the past subjunctive from the simple past, if they look the same?" It seems safer to say that the past tense can be used...

Anonymous wrote: 2. I think of it as a past subjunctive; but I wouldn't refer to it as such, because the next question would be "how can I distinguish the past subjunctive from the simple past, if they look the same?" It seems safer to say that the past tense can be used for the "remote" or...