Search results for 'tag:Subjunctives tag:Present tenses' matching tags 'Subjunctives' and 'Present tenses'

Re: Noun clause or Adejctive clause

Fandorin — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 21:06:06 GMT

I'm sorry I made a mistake. Of course it's a Nominal Clause. I hurried up.

Her idea that I hire you was a very fun one.

It's kind of Subjunctive. And as I know only Present Tense can be used in Nominal Clause.

Her idea that I hire you is a very fun one.

Re: there had to be

CalifJim — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 06:57:38 GMT

pructus
âThere had to beâ .. Is it simple past tense as an indicative or is it a present tense as a subjunctive?

My subjunctive scouts have returned empty-handed.

Consider that a true subjunctive in a main clause is not found in English, certainly not the past subjunctive. It's the simple past indicative tense.

there had to be

pructus — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 05:55:11 GMT

Following is from âHarry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkabanâ. The situation is that Harry Potter failed in the Quidditch game for the first time.

Harry put his face to his knees, his hands gripping his hair. Fred grabbed his shoulder and shook it roughly.

âCâmon, Harry, youâve never missed the Snitch before.â

âThere had to be one time you didnât get it.â said George.

âThere had to beâ .. Is it simple past tense as an indicative or is it a present tense as a subjunctive?

Re: (on) next Sunday

Mr Wordy — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 23:00:25 GMT

Anonymous
Thank you. Does your explanation assume that it is reported speech??

I guess so.

Anonymous
Sentence as corrected by you:
She said she would call me when she ~~is here~~ arrives.

Actually, this wasn't so much a "correction" as a "room for improvement" (as Abil asked for). "is here" is not actually wrong; it just sounds better to me with "arrives". I should have noted that.

Anonymous
So, if something is further away in time a present tense after a subordinate clause started by 'when' is possible. Does that apply to a subordinate clause started by 'if' , 'after' ?

I think Iâd ideally use the subjunctive with "would" and the present tense with "will":

She said sheâd call me if she decided to come.
She said sheâll call me if she decides to come.

However, in practice I might deviate from this ideal from time to time!

Re: Archaic Past Conditional?

badegine — Thu, 08 May 2008 20:36:03 GMT

Many thanks for the response, but I'm not sure how it can be correct - and this is almost entirely my fault for not setting out an example well enough.

In the coffin quotation, I believe that it can't simply be a subjunctive mood form because, by inserting 'we thought' into it, an element of doubt is introduced. In this British archaism [I'm maintaining that is such a thing until I'm totally convinced otherwise], 'should' has absolutely no element of doubt to it. It desribes a past action in the present tense, and a better alternative would perhaps be 'where we were to find the the coffin'. This still, however, isn't perfect. It's a nuance issue, and I'm finding it more than a little difficult to convey - I'll work on some more examples, I think.

Actually, as clarification, how about the France example? Ignoring any issue of tense in order to explain, I think the best substitution for 'should' would be 'I will have every intention of...',though when used - here at least - it has more the cultural implication of 'I will do myself the social justice of...' [which is why I'm so keen to label it as anachronistic].

Anyhow, with all of that bourne in mind, I think I'm going to stick with the Imp-Sub thing...but I'm more than prepared to revise this.

If it hasn't come across, I can't thank you enough for the help you've already offered - I just think that a 'revision' to some degree would be necessary

Re: suggest+noun clause in the simple present tense?

Marius Hancu — Wed, 07 May 2008 00:44:26 GMT

The subjunctive mood forms:

should sell

and

sell

are the formal ones.

Sells is informal.

Re: suggest+noun clause in the simple present tense?

MrPedantic — Tue, 06 May 2008 07:00:02 GMT

I'm not familiar with the site; but the writer may well be of BrE origin.

(In BrE, you could use "sells", "should sell", or the subjunctive "sell". The last option has become more popular in the last two decades, in BrE, in contexts where "should sell" would once have been predominant.)

MrP

Re: correct sentences or not

Cool Breeze — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 20:57:45 GMT

I see nothing wrong with any sentence. No plural in the first sentence for the very reason that parental example is regarded as a theme. In sentence No. 2 the speaker hopes now and therefore uses the present tense. The subjunctive isn't always used after as if/as though even though it is very common.

Re: case of subjunctive in the 'if' clause?

CalifJim — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 17:15:22 GMT

It's not subjunctive. It's the modal use of need. Modal need can occur in non-assertive contexts. Modals never take the s in the first person singular of the present tense the way non-modal verbs do. In that way they resemble subjunctive forms, which are also missing the s.

The subject of the clause is missing, however (if it need be), but that's because if need be has become a fixed idiomatic expression.

Re: Past or present tense

Kooyeen — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 21:26:52 GMT

Hi Anonymous,
the reason is simple. After verbs like "thought", or "knew", etc., using the past tense is idiomatic. That's why you should say:
I thought they were going to play! (not ...they are going...)
Who would have thought he was a communist! (not ...he is a communist...)
But if you consider other verbs in reported speech like "told", it's ok to use the present tense:
He told me he works for MacDollands.

As for the other structure:
He drives as if he was/were/is the king of the road.
He drives like he is the king of the road.
...all of the above options are ok and have the same meaning. Those "past tenses" or the subjunctive (="were") probably stress the fact that the situation is hypothetical, but the meanings are all the same. He drives the same way the king of the road would drive.
So, She always shouts at me as if she's totally insane doesn't imply she's insane or that you think she is. Maybe she really is insane, but that sentence tells you nothing, it's just a comparison. So I basically don't agree with Yoong.