If it rains, I won't come
At 1 PM:
Friend: John, will you come to the party with us? (the party is at night)
John: If it doesn't rain, I will come. (looking at the weather forecast for the day, which predicts rain at night)
At 3 PM:
Friend: (Mike told me) John said that if it doesn't rain, he will come.
Now suppose it rained that night, and so John didn't go the party. After the party ends, someone asks to one of his friends "why didn't John come to the party?"
Friend: (Mike told me) John said that if it doesn't rain/didn't rain/hadn't rained, he will come/would come/would have come.
Which one is correct?
Top answer
Rizan Malik John didn't go the party. " The answer, in terms of a "reported speech exercise", is John said that if it didn't rain, he would come. But you could turn it around and say John said that he wouldn't come if it rained.
- Rizan Malik John didn't go the party.
- " The answer, in terms of a "reported speech exercise", is John said that if it didn't rain, he would come.
- But you could turn it around and say John said that he wouldn't come if it rained.
- On the other hand, the 'real' answer to Why didn't John come to the party?
- would most likely be Probably because it was raining (, but there might be another reason) .
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Rizan MalikJohn didn't go the party. After the party ends, someone asks to one of his friends "why didn't John come to the party?"
The answer, in terms of a "reported speech exercise", is
John said that if it didn't rain, he would come.
But you could turn it around and say John said that he wouldn't come if it rained.
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