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New2grammar Posted 19 years ago
Grammar

said-> can't or couldn't

0The officer 01font00said02font00 I may/might have to testify in court and that I can't/couldnt do it anonymously. 02br
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00FYI, up to now I have not testified.02br
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00 If I had testified, I would choose "might" and "couldn't" in this sentence because the events (said, testify) are in the past. Of course, "couldn't" is not used to indicate past but "can't" is definitely not a past tense model verb.0-
  

Top answer

) you can use "might" and "couldn't" here. 0-

— Annvan

  • ) you can use "might" and "couldn't" here.
  • 0-
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4 Answers
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0 Because this is reported speech (the officer said...) you can use "might" and "couldn't" here. 0-
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0Can I also use "can't" here since the event "testify" is not over?02br
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00 I know that in reported speech "couldn't" is prefered. But in story telling is it acceptable to use "can't"?0-
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0 I think if you want to use "can't" it would sound better if you put the reporting verb (to say) in the present perfect, i.e.02br
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00"The officer has said that I may have to testify in court and that I can't do it anonymously." 0-
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0 I'd say any of these, but I prefer the first two over the last two. They all mean the same thing.02br
02br
00 The officer said I might have to ... and that I couldn't ...02br
00 The officer said I may have to ... and that I can't ...02br
00 The officer said I might have to ... and that I can't ...02br
00 The officer said I may ha
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