By Expressions, Simple past

Cheers Optilang. But you know we can use the expression "for" with simple past tense as well if the action took place for a period in the past. What do you think?

You make us struggle to figure out what your problem is. After a while we get the idea that maybe you feel sorry for yourself because she's so busy she neglects you. Or is your problem that you feel guilty because you can't do anything to help lighten her load? I think it would require...

I'm afraid, Marius, that you are never going to persuade me that "It's years since I've had a cigarette", and similar expressions, are in any way exceptional, unusual or strange. In my experience, this form of wording is routinely and quite naturally used by large numbers of...

There's no corresponding form.having lived is a participial expression, a non-finite form, so it can't express the full range of tenses that a finite verb form can.(The same problem occurs with infinitives. The infinitives do not cover the full range of tenses.)CJ

In other words, "I wanted to know if the train would arrive on time" is wrong? I consider it correct because if does not denote condition in the sentence.CB

REMEMBER No Future in Time Clauseswill is the mark of the Future of the Present.would is the mark of the Future of the Past.This reminder applies to both "Futures". It means: No will or would in subordinate clauses introduced by conjunctions such as when, before, after, etc.Like all...

What I neglected to point out is that the instructions from your web site specify the use of simple past within the clause which starts with a time expression. "We would go out for dinner" is a separate clause. So I still see no inconsistency.It would clarify matters if you would say...

This seems consistent. "Already" is an example of a time expression, so simple past is required. "I already told Mark that when he arrived, we would go out for dinner.Perhaps you're concerned about the final clause. (They probably shouldn't have used that example.) ...

Hi,I was brushing on my knowledge of the modal "would" with the help of the Englishpage website and got stuck on what it is saying here on its tutorial on "would".REMEMBER No Future in Time ClausesLike all future forms, Future in the Past cannot be used in clauses beginning...

Hi, I know that you use the simple past for an action happened in a definite time in the past and the present perfect for a time period that didn’t end yet. There's more to it than that. You need to review the uses of the Present perfect in a good grammar book. Once, I heard Peter Griffin say...