By Conditionals, Past tenses

CalifJim, thanks for clarifying this. I wonder why it is not mentioned in Conditional Types notes that they are only effective in expressing likeliness if there's no backshift in time. I think that's why Gurus like you are essential to learners. Thanks a lot and Merry Christmas!

CalifJim wrote:I would not get too worried about the likelihood factor here. Even though the backshift occurs, the likelihood remains that of the original tenses. If I would like to give my readers the impression of unlikeliness in the past, how should I rephrase my sentence?But on another...

I would not get too worried about the likelihood factor here. Even though the backshift occurs, the likelihood remains that of the original tenses. But on another point, there is something unidiomatic about the example itself. It doesn't seem that that last sentence comes up...

I don't think I get what you are saying. I do know what is reported speech but I don't see how that is related to my question. Please clarify to me. Meanwhile, let's revisit my original sentence. If I see her, I will show her my new bike. If I use this sentence in a story like: Yesterday, I...

1. If I see her, I will show her my new bike. =>Conditional #1 - it means that it is likely/possible I will see her. 2. If I saw her, I would show her my new bike => Conditional #2 - it means that it is unlikely I will see her. My question is if I narrate my story using past tense and...

Hi RexYour sentences look wrong to me. You have two alternatives:If I installed the latest version of the operating system, would it erase my data? (conditional sentence, you haven't installed it yet)If I installed the latest version of the operating system, did it erase my data? (entire sentence...

Thanks, Marius. You have been a great help. I still have 2 more questions and I would really appreciate if you could answer both of them. Which conditional type is sentence 1 using? My guess would be Type 2 because 'lied' is in past tense.But why doesn't the main clause contain either...

1, 3: correct, IMO In 3, the "let" is used in past tense for conditional, which is OK. 2: I don't think you need "wanted," because the doubt is about your feeding her, not about what she wants. "Wanted" would seem overcorrect to me. A good reference:...

Tlzone08 wrote:I thought you can use "If I have money, I will help you." OK and "If I have money, I would help you." No, that's not OK Here, HAVE is the present tense, and WOULD is the past tense. In the sentence above, 'would help' is conditional (i.e. 'would' is not the...

The "were" form is often wrongly called a past subjunctive, but of course "it were done" is not a past tense of "it be done". I wouldn't agree with this writer. Past tense forms that turn up in e.g. conditionals are the descendants of Old/Middle English past subjunctive forms. MrP