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Anonymous Posted 14 years ago
Grammar

Second Third Mixed Conditionals

2/ Where the first part is still true

If I could speak Spanish, I wouldn't have needed to get the letter translated. - Does this necessarily mean I can't speak Spanish now? Can I use this one even if could speak it?

If I had been able to Spanish, I wouldn't have needed to get the letter translated. - This doesn't necessarily mean that I can speak Spanish now, does it? It just tells us that I couldn't speak it at some point in the past.
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Can I use 'were' instead of 'had been' in third conditional? As in:

If I were there yesterday, I wouldn't have done it.

If I went to bed, I wouldn't have met you.
  

Top answer

If I could speak Spanish, I wouldn't have needed to get the letter translated. - Does this necessarily mean I can't speak Spanish now? -- Yes.

— Mister Micawber

  • If I could speak Spanish, I wouldn't have needed to get the letter translated.
  • - Does this necessarily mean I can't speak Spanish now?
  • -- Yes.
  • - - No.
  • If I had been able to Spanish, I wouldn't have needed to get the letter translated.
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25 Answers
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If I could speak Spanish, I wouldn't have needed to get the letter translated. - Does this necessarily mean I can't speak Spanish now? -- Yes.
Can I use this one even if could speak it?-- No.
If I had been able to Spanish, I wouldn't have needed to get the letter translated. - This doesn't necessarily mean that I can speak Spanish now, does it? It just
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If I had been able to Spanish, I wouldn't have needed to get the letter translated. - This only tells us that I couldn't speak it in the past? I may or may not be able to speak it now, in the present? It depends on the context? Can I use this version 'If I had been able to speak Spanish, I wouldn't have needed to get the letter translated' even if it's a general fact that I CANNOT speak Spa
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Can I use this version 'If I had been able to speak Spanish, I wouldn't have needed to get the letter translated' even if it's a general fact that I CANNOT speak Spanish?-- Yes, of course—or if it's a secret—or if you've started Spanish classes recently—or if you are a fluent Spanish speaker now—or in any situation whatsoever in which you could not speak Spanish then.

If
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Do you prefer versions with second/third conditional when a general fact is that you couldn't and still can't do something?
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Here's one part of a situation that I heard in a tv-show. There was this girl named Elena. And she thought that her boyfriend wasn't gone(I don't mean geographically, however I'm sure you understand).

If he was gone he wouldn't have
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Speaking of which..."How did you know it was me" or "How do you know it's me", which one is better?

Also, "I was mean to you" and "I was being mean to you"
"I was sarcastic" and "I was being sarcastic"
What are the differences between these?
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If I were explaining a situation that happened in the past and wanted to ask you about something, I'd put it this was:
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Do you prefer versions with second/third conditional when a general fact is that you couldn't and still can't do something?-- Examples, please.

If he was gone he wouldn't have called. - Did she use second/third conditional because she was sure that her lovely boyfriend wasn't gone?-- If she were sure, she would have used 'were', not 'was'.
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Mister MicawberWhat did she mean by (something)? Is "what does she mean" also acceptable and completely the same?-- It depends in part on whether she died, etc., in the interval.
What if she hasn't died? Would then "what does she mean by(something)" be correct?

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The last question!

If you hadn't told me you were 13, I would've thou
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What if she hasn't died? Would then "what does she mean by(something)" be correct?-- Stick with the regressed form unless she is very immediate to the context.

If you hadn't told me you were 13, I would've thought you were 16.
If you hadn't told me you were 13, I would think you are 16.
I want to emphasize that I still think she is 16 even thought s
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Mister MicawberIf you still think she is 16, then you can use neither. Both say that you now believe she is not 16.
Ooops. I should've phrased the sentence a bit differently. I don't really know how to explain it so I'll try through an example.

Me: How old are you?
Her: 16.
Me: If you hadn't told me you were 13, I would've thought you were 16/
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If you hadn't told me you were 13, I would've thought you were 16-- Think when you told me that.
If you hadn't told me you were 13 I would think you are 16. -- Think right now.
AnonymousThis is so arrogant of you. or This was so arrogant of you.Which one is better and why? Thanks!
Neither, since there is nothing arrogant about my ability to re
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