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"We determined that it was imperative that he report this to the authorities at Cal State," testified John.Shouldn't it be reported instead or report?  Can both be used? Thanks!

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

PreciousJonesShouldn't it be reported instead of report? Can both be used?

No and no. "it is/was imperative that" takes a clause with the base form of the verb. This construction also goes by the name of "subjunctive", but the name isn't important.

The idea is that lying somewhere under the surface of this sentence is a command form: Report this to the authorities! (That's what 'imperative' means.) Of course you wouldn't command someone with Reported this ...! So the past form doesn't make sense there.

This structure also occurs with 'should': ... it was imperative that he should report this to the authorities ..., so if it makes sense to you to think of it this way, just imagine that ... it was imperative that he report ... is really the same grammar as ... it was imperative that he should report ..., but with 'should' missing. If that doesn't make sense, you can forget I said it.

CJ

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