0 Hi,02br 00I asked about this stuff in another thread, but maybe the thread was confusing, I got no replies. So I decided to post the senteces I wrote in another thread, this. Basically, I need some opinions on this:02br 02hr00 Many people say that "could, should, might, would" don't change in reported speech. I don't think so, but let's see:02br 01b00I'd like to go to Jenny's party ----> He said he would like to go to Jenny's party02b00 (I would say this is ok only if Jenny hasn't had the party yet)02br 01b00I'd like to go to Jenny's party ----> He said he would have liked to go to Jenny's party02b00 (I would say so if Jenny has already had the party or she's having the party now)02br 01b00You should eat more vegetables -----> My doctor said I should eat more vegetables 02b00(I'd say this is ok as a general statement, I should eat more vegetables, that's good for my health)02br 01b00You should eat more vegetables in the next few days, until you get well -----> (After a month) -- My doctor said I should have eaten more vegetables in the next few days, until I got well02b00 (I wouldn't just say "should" here. That's a past situation, I don't need to eat more vegetables now)02br 01b00If you catch that disease, you could even die -------> They told my grandfather that if he caught that disease, he could have died02b00 (I'd say this is ok if my grandpa has already died, or if there's no possibility of dying or catching that disease now)02br 01b00If you caught that disease, you could even die ------> They told my grandfather that if he had caught that disease, he could have died02b00 (Same as above, that is, I'd say this is ok if my grandpa has already died, or if there's no possibility of dying or catching that disease now)02br 02br 00 I could go on, but I think you will have understood what I mean by now. I left out "might" from my examples, I think it's a little different, since "may" has practically the same meaning in many contexts. So "might" can often be seen as the past of "may", and we don't need to backshift it to "might have". By the way, the same is true of "could", we can sometimes see it as the past of "can".02br 02br 00 As for "conditional sentences", my little example is:02br 01b00If I had the money, I would give it to you -----> He said that if he had the money, he would give it to me02b00 (This way, I think what he said is still true) 02br 01b00If I had some money with me, I would pay you a beer -----> He said that if he'd had some money with him, he would have paid me a beer02b00 (Past situation, I would have paid me a beer on that occasion, this is not a general statement as the above one)02br 01b00If I had enough money, I'd move straight to the US! ------> Hey, did you know Bill is in the US now? - Ah, he made it then! Actually, I remember he once told me that if he'd had enough money, he would have moved straight to the US.02b00 (no personal comments, there's enough context)02br 02br 00End of the story guys, it took some time but I finally managed to invent some examples the way I wanted. I know this post is long, sorry, anyway I just need some opinions on what I wrote, nothing more. That's just my opinion on the sentences, and I'm not sure of what I think at all! 05002br 00Thank you in advance. 051010id311id1
Top answer
0 They 01u 00all02u 00 look fine to me with regard to reported speech. 02br 02br 00 CJ0-
— CalifJim
0 They 01u 00all02u 00 look fine to me with regard to reported speech.
02br 02br 00 CJ0-
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0 They 01u00all02u00 look fine to me with regard to reported speech. Your reasoning for choosing each structure seems quite sound.02br 02br 00 On other matters, I only saw one tiny mistake: We say 01i01b00buy02b00 me a beer02i00, never01i00 01b00pay02b00 me a beer02i
1font00Hi there Koyeen,02font02br 02br 01font00Comments on two of your sentences...02font02br 02br 01b00You should eat more vegetables in the next few days, until you get well -----> My doctor said I should have eaten more vegetables in the next few days, until I got well0
0 I succeded in editing my post despite you already replied, how strange... anyway, I forgot to write "After a month..."02br 02br 00Thank you for your opinions, I really needed someone to check those sentences. The fact is that most grammar books and websites are misleading. 05100 I found no websites that explained that, they all say "modal verbs don't change in report
I'm an ESL teacher at an Intensive English Program in the US, currently teaching an advanced grammar course. We are studying this very materila.
I completely agree with what you have written. I, too, am shocked that the books seem to always forget the perfect modal possibility and the difference in meaning between them and the simple modal options. I'm actually on-line right now to tr