0
Seraphin Posted 18 years ago
Grammar

grammar about the verb "to suggest"

0I 00seem to recall such a rule in the English grammar (using the example to illustrate it)02br
02br
02br
00example: the evidence suggests that he (should) be the one who does it.02br
00but can we say02br
00a) "the evidence suggests that he MAY be the one who does it" ?02br
00b) "the evidence suggests that he CAN be the one who does it" ?02br
00c) "the evidence suggests that he IS the one who does it" ? 02br
00 0-
  

Top answer

12br 10c) "the evidence suggests that he IS the one who does it" ? 12br 12blockquote 10It seems to me that in all of these examples "does" should be replaced with "did". After all, evidence is only gathered after some event.

— RayH

  • 12br 10c) "the evidence suggests that he IS the one who does it" ?
  • 12br 12blockquote 10It seems to me that in all of these examples "does" should be replaced with "did".
  • After all, evidence is only gathered after some event.
  • 0-
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.

7 Answers
0
1blockquote
01cite10Seraphin12cite10I 10seem to recall such a rule in the English grammar (using the example to illustrate it)12br
12br
10example: the evidence suggests that he (should) be the one who does it.12br
10but can we say12br
10a) "the evidence suggests that he MAY be the one who does it" ?12br
0
0
1blockquote
01cite10RayH12cite10It seems to me that in all of these examples "does" should be replaced with "did".12blockquote
10Not if it is a repeated action. For example: 02br
02br
01i00Someone keeps peeing on the back fence. The evidence suggests that he may be the one who does it.02i0-
0
0
0Ray is right about the tenses. A more normal context would be: 02br
02br
01i01b00He02b00 suggests that 01b00she02b00 02i00(should) be the one who does it.02br
02br
01i00should be02i00 or 01i00be02i02br
02br
00are subjunctives implying an
0
0
0 01blockquote
01cite10Seraphin12cite10can we say 12br
12br
10a) "the evidence suggests that he MAY be the one who does it" ?12br
12br
10b) "the evidence suggests that he CAN be the one who does it" ?12br
12br
10c) "the evidence suggests that he IS the one who does it" ? 12br
12br
0
0
0 Bokeh's sentences 02br
01i00Someone keeps peeing on the back fence. The evidence suggests that he 01b00may 02b00be the one who does it.02i02br
00are OK, but I don't think they correspond to the original one 02br
01i00 the evidence suggests that he 01b00(should) b02b00e the one who does it0
0
0
0 This is a proper example where 01b00may/can/ought to02b00 are all OK:02br
05002br
01table01tr01td
02br
01i00The 01u00evidence suggests he01b00 should02b00 02u00hit at least 35 homers per season for years to come.02i
0
0
According to some grammar book after verbs such as SUGGEST, the infinitive without to should be use, so the correct form would be :

the evidence suggests that he be the one who does it. (or probably did it becasue the action happened in the past).

I know that it does not sound natural, but that's what they say!
0

Related Questions