Howard ………. to speak with them, but they appeared to be in a hurry.

Question

Howard ………. to speak with them, but they appeared to be in a hurry.
a) would stop
b) would have stopped (Answer Key)
c) would of stopped
d) will stop

Source: school exam

Hello,
I wonder why A doesn't work here? B looks wrong to me.
Could you please tell me why A doesn't work? If "would" and "appeared" don't fit together? They both indicate the past tense. Then, what's the problem with A?

Thank you.

Teechr · Accepted Answer

Howard would stop to speak with them.
That indicates a past habit.

B is the correct answer. Think of it in terms of the third (imaginary) conditional.

Howard would have stopped to speak with them if they had not been in a hurry.

CalifJim · Answer

sb70012I wonder why A doesn't work here? B looks wrong to me.

It's a problem of tense coordination.

Howard would stop to speak with them (if the conditions were right), but they appear to be in a hurry. (present)
Howard would have stopped to speak with them (if the conditions had been right), but they appeared to be in a hurry. (past)

There are lots of sentences with this pattern. ... would ... but (present) OR ... would have ... but (past). As with the example above, they generally have a vacuous, unstated if-clause. The first part (up to the comma and including the unstated if-clause) is hypothetical, and the second part (after 'but') is real.

Yolanda would like to enter the piano competition, but it's too late to apply.
Yolanda would have liked to enter the piano competition, but it was too late to apply.

Stella would make a peach pie, but there are no peaches left.
Stella would have made a peach pie, but there were no peaches left.

The Jeffersons would have their kitchen remodeled, but it's too expensive.
The Jeffersons would have had their kitchen remodeled, but it was too expensive.

Sam would join in the game, but there are already enough players on the team.
Sam would have joined in the game, but there were already enough players on the team.

CJ

Sb70012 · Answer

CalifJimHoward would have stopped to speak with them (if the conditions had been right), but they appeared to be in a hurry.

Thank you.
One more question:
In one of the forums, one native English speaker said that option A "would stop" can work with if I add "always" before the word "appeared". Do you agree with this?

He meant => Howard would stop to speak with them, but they always appeared to be in a hurry.

If you agree with this, then I will be confused to understand your 8 wonderful sentence examples.
But if you don't agree with him/her, I will understand your explanation completely.

Now you agree with him/her?

Thank you.

Fivejedjon · Answer

sb70012 Howard would stop to speak with them, but they always appeared to be in a hurry.

That's possible. Here 'would' is used in the sense of past habit.

This does not conflict with the conditional examples CJ gave. It's a different issue.

Sb70012 · Answer

Thank you.
What happens if I use "will' instead of 'would'? Is it possible?

I mean:

Howard will stop to speak with them, but they ............ to be in a hurry.

How should I use "appear" in the blank?

Thank you.

Teechr · Answer

sb70012What happens if I use "will' instead of 'would'?

"Will" indicates the future.

sb70012Is it possible?

Yes, e.g.,

Howard will stop to speak with them, but they will probably pretend to be in a hurry.

Fivejedjon · Answer

sb70012Howard will stop to speak with them, but they ............ to be in a hurry.

'Will' can indicate present/general habit, but the sentences would benefit from an adverb or two:

Howard will always/usually/often stop to speak to/with them, but they always/usually/often appear to be in a hurry.

Howard ………. to speak with them, but they appeared to be in a hurry.

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