0
Anonymous Posted 8 years ago
Grammar

Confused.

Reporter: North Korea is expanding there nuclear program even after the meeting with the president of the United States. Are you concerned?

Republican Senator: I would be concerned if they are expanding it.


Is the senator's sentence correct? I heard this the senator say. Is "would" used because whatever the reporter is saying is not real to the senator and why is "are" used instead of "were". Thank you in advance.

  

Top answer

I would be concerned if they are expanding it. Correct. The senator is not certain whether North Korea is expanding their nuclear program so he uses are instead of were .

— Ivanhr

  • I would be concerned if they are expanding it.
  • Correct.
  • The senator is not certain whether North Korea is expanding their nuclear program so he uses are instead of were .
  • Had the Senator talked about a hypothetical/unreal situation, he would've used 'were'.
  • I would be concerned if they were expanding it.
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.

1 Answers
0

I would be concerned if they are expanding it.

Correct. The senator is not certain whether North Korea is expanding their nuclear program so he uses are instead of were.

Had the Senator talked about a hypothetical/unreal situation, he would've used 'were'.

I would be concerned if they were expanding it. (hypothetical situation)

0

Related Questions