Difference between “would have”s?
2. If John hadn’t injured his leg, he would surely have gone to school yesterday.
3. If John hadn’t injured his leg, he would certainly have gone to school yesterday.
Hi. I think there’s a difference between 1, 2, and 3 in terms of their implications.
I think in 1 and 3, the “would have” clauses express counterfactuality that we know he didn’t go to school yesterday while in 2 we are uncertain whether he went to school yesterday so the “would have” in 2 is not counterfactual.
Do you think so?
Thank you.
Top answer
zuotengdazuo Do you think so? No. The presence of 'surely' or 'certainly' do not modify the statement sufficiently to turn a counterfactual into a factual.
- zuotengdazuo Do you think so?
- No.
- The presence of 'surely' or 'certainly' do not modify the statement sufficiently to turn a counterfactual into a factual.
- All three say essentially the same thing.
- CJ
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zuotengdazuoDo you think so?
No. The presence of 'surely' or 'certainly' do not modify the statement sufficiently to turn a counterfactual into a factual. All three say essentially the same thing.
CJ
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