He wouldn't answer

Question

Hello dear teachers,Why "wouldn't" has been used in the following sentence not "won't"? Or "didn't"?1:She wouldn't answer your call.2:I tried to tell her but she wouldn't listen.

GPY · Accepted Answer

Siavash Moghaddasian1: She wouldn't answer your call.

More context is needed to interpret this. There could be an implied condition (e.g. "even if you rang her"), or it could be talking about a past refusal to answer. In the first case, "won't" can alternatively be used (sounds more definite than "would") but "didn't" can't. In the second case, "won't" cannot be used because it does not have the right tense, while "didn't" can be used but is more a statement of fact, rather than a statement about the other person's willingness.

Siavash Moghaddasian2: I tried to tell her but she wouldn't listen.

"wouldn't" is used to match the tense of "tried".

I try to tell her but she won't listen.
I tried to tell her but she wouldn't listen.

"didn't" is also possible. As before, "didn't" is more factual and less about the other person's volition, although because of the content of this sentence there is not a huge difference here.

He wouldn't answer

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