0
Olgaa Posted 17 years ago
Grammar

Conditionals

Is such a sentence possible? "I would still be his secretary if that thing hadn’t happened."
I thought we should use would+have+V3 if the action is missed or in this case the rule is broken cause BE is a stative verb and in my case it would mean a complete action but not the process?
  

Top answer

Of course it is possible to convey the idea you suggest in English just as it is in other languages. English would be severely defective if "you" couldn't be a secretary now regardless of what has or hasn't happened in the past. CB

— Cool Breeze

  • Of course it is possible to convey the idea you suggest in English just as it is in other languages.
  • English would be severely defective if "you" couldn't be a secretary now regardless of what has or hasn't happened in the past.
  • CB
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
Of course it is possible to convey the idea you suggest in English just as it is in other languages. English would be severely defective if "you" couldn't be a secretary now regardless of what has or hasn't happened in the past.

CB
0
0
OlgaaIs such a sentence possible? "I would still be his secretary if that thing hadn’t happened."
Yes, it's quite possible, and it's a fairly common pattern. It's called a mixed conditional. A stative verb in the would-clause does almost seem to be a requirement, though the example below with notice is non-stative.

If I hadn't g
0

Related Questions