0
Exodejavu Posted 17 years ago
Grammar

A test question of conditional

Hello,

If you ____ to Bob yesterday morning , you would not be so angry.

A) talked
B) were talking
C) could talk
D) had talked

The given answer is D.
According to this page about grammar, I think the answer might be A.

I would like to have your comments.

Best Wishes
  

Top answer

The person IS angry, and the opportunity for having talked to Bob yesterday is now in the past. The "If I had enough money, I would go to Japan" example still leaves open the possibility that I could get the money. In this question, the first elemnt is no longer possible.

— BarbaraPA

  • The person IS angry, and the opportunity for having talked to Bob yesterday is now in the past.
  • The "If I had enough money, I would go to Japan" example still leaves open the possibility that I could get the money.
  • In this question, the first elemnt is no longer possible.
Free · every Monday

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.

2 Answers
0
The person IS angry, and the opportunity for having talked to Bob yesterday is now in the past.

The "If I had enough money, I would go to Japan" example still leaves open the possibility that I could get the money. In this question, the first elemnt is no longer possible.
0
0
The act of talking to Bob yesterday supposedly prevents the anger today.

So you need the past in the first clause (the if clause), the present in the second clause (the main clause).

But in hypothetical conditional structures, the following special procedures typically apply:

In the if clause, present (or future) time is expressed by the past
0

Related Questions