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Viceidol Posted 18 years ago
Grammar

Can I use "would" to replace all the "should" here?(in subordinate clauses)

0It's astonishing that she 01b01font00should02font02b00 say that sort of thing to you.02br
02br
00I was shocked that she 01font01b00shouldn't02b02font00 have invited Helen.02br
02br
00I'm sorry you 01font01b00should02b02font00 think I did it on purpose.02br
02br
00Do you think it's normal that the child 01font01b00should02b02font00 be so tired?02br
02br
00It was natural that they 01b01font00should 02font02b00want him to go to a good school.02br
02br
00May I ask if I can replace all the "should" with "would"? 02br
02br
00Thank you for your answer.0-
  

Top answer

0 No, these are all 01b 00putative should02b 00's, 01b 00would02b 00 can't be used without changing the meaning. Basically after "surprised, shocked, natural" you should be using01b 00 should02b 00. 02b 02br 00It's for some just a BrE usage, for some old-fashioned.

— Marius Hancu

  • 0 No, these are all 01b 00putative should02b 00's, 01b 00would02b 00 can't be used without changing the meaning.
  • Basically after "surprised, shocked, natural" you should be using01b 00 should02b 00.
  • 02b 02br 00It's for some just a BrE usage, for some old-fashioned.
  • However, I found it in some BrE contemporary fiction, thus I don't think it's obsolete at all.
  • r=7646030383#7646030383
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9 Answers
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0 No, these are all 01b00putative should02b00's, 01b00would02b00 can't be used without changing the meaning. Basically after "surprised, shocked, natural" you should be using01b00 should02b00. See Swan, also do some searches for01b02br
00 putative should.02b02br
00It's for some just a Br
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0Yes, but in Practical English Usage 01i00should (4):in subordinate clauses02i00 the book says:02br
02br
01b00------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 02b02br
02br
01b002 reactions02b
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0<>It's astonishing that she 01b01font00should02font02b00 say that sort of thing to you. 01i00would02i00 also possible; virtually same meaning. 02br
00I was shocked that she 01font01b00shouldn't02b02font00 have invited Helen. 01i
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0 I suggest you also read this thread in another forum:02br
01b00Adjectives and verbs usage with should02b02br
05002br
00one of the posters being our Mr. Pedantic (BrE)0510250hrefhttp://www.usingenglish.com/forum/ask-teacher/24690-adjectives-verbs-usage-should.html11id1
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0Viceidol:02br
00The 01b00putative should02b00 is rare nowadays in the AmE.02br
00For present day alternatives in AmE, see the 2nd link in my original reply. It's quite clear to me. 02br
02br
00You can find it in period/older AmE articles, when the two grammars (AmE/BrE were more similar), such as this one from 1915: 02br
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0 01blockquote
01cite10CalifJim12cite10<>It's astonishing that she 11b11font10should12font12b10 say that sort of thing to you. 11i10would12i10 also possible; virtually same meaning. 12br
10I was shocked that she 11font11b
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0As a speaker of British English, I'd say those phrases are all high-register / old fashioned. Very few people speak like that and hardly anyone would write like that any more. 02br
00 In spoken word, some of them would simply be ellided:02br
02br
00I'm sorry you'd think I did it on purpose. 02br
02br
00 It was natural that they'd want him
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0 01blockquote
01cite10Anonymous12cite10As a speaker of British English, I'd say those phrases are all high-register / old fashioned. Very few people speak like that and hardly anyone would write like that any more. 12blockquote
10 You're probably right, but this is recent stuff (2001), by a (still) young established British writ
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0Several good comments in this thread at another site (see esp those by 01b00gdwdwrkr, hsargent, Phil Hunt02b00):02br
00BrE: Whom 01b00should02b00 he see coming along02br
05000 0250hrefhttp://www.wordwizard.com/phpbb3/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=20329
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