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Anonymous Posted 18 years ago
Grammar
subjunctive:if it were not vs. if there were/was not
Hi,
In the subjunctive, how would the two cases, one that has 'it were not' in the if-clause, and the other with 'there were/was not." be different? Are they both the subjunctive? Are they the same in terms of their structures?
If it were not for his financial support, we would not/could not manage.
If there were/was (which one is right?) not his financial support, we couldn't/wouldn't not manage.
In the subjunctive, how would the two cases, one that has 'it were not' in the if-clause, and the other with 'there were/was not." be different? Are they both the subjunctive? Are they the same in terms of their structures?
If it were not for his financial support, we would not/could not manage.
If there were/was (which one is right?) not his financial support, we couldn't/wouldn't not manage.
Top answer
-- This is OK (X) If there were/was not his financial support, we couldn't/wouldn't not manage. -- This is no good.
- -- This is OK (X) If there were/was not his financial support, we couldn't/wouldn't not manage.
- -- This is no good.
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2 Answers
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If it were not for his financial support, we would not/could not manage.-- This is OK
(X) If there were/was not his financial support, we couldn't/wouldn't not manage. -- This is no good.
If it were not for his financial support, we would not/could not manage.-- This is OK
(X) If there were/was not his financial support, we couldn't/wouldn't not manage. -- This is no good.
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If it weren't for his financial support, we could not manage. were -- subjunctive
If that was a compliment, I'd hate to hear one of his insults! was -- indicative
CJ
If that was a compliment, I'd hate to hear one of his insults! was -- indicative
CJ
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