There was ?

Question

If there was no food, would you eat humans ?If there is no food, would you eat humans ?Which sentence is correct, and when we use If what tense shall we stick with it ?

Avangi · Accepted Answer

If there was no food, would you eat humans ?
If there is no food, would you eat humans ?

IMHO, you must use "would" with was/were, but with "is," you may use either "will" or "would."

I believe these "modals" can have more than one meaning.

Some might say your first example is in subjunctive mood, and your second is in indicative mood.

CalifJim · Answer

AnonymousIf there was no food, would you eat humans ?
If there is no food, ~~would~~ [will / do] you eat humans ?

The usual combinations are as shown above.

CJ

Avangi · Answer

"Do" wins the Google prize, but "will" loses handily.

"If there is no * do" 2,340,000,000 Google hits

" " * would" 2,260,000,000

" " * does" 2,130,000,000

" " * will" 614,000,000

Anonymous · Answer

Hi, which mood is common to use ? The indicative mood, or subjunctive mood ?
Like my example, which one should I use ?

CalifJim · Answer

The figures for do and does have to be combined because they both represent the present tense. The figure for would is surprising.

Internet authors are just not visiting EnglishForward often enough to know how it's done correctly!

CJ

Anonymous · Answer

Hello,

I'm another anonymous user in this forum.

I thought 'would' should not go with if...is or any verb in present tense, but I was wrong.
Is this correct to the ears of native speakers?
How is combination 'is' and 'would' different in interpretation from 'is' and 'will'?

Thank you so much for your advice.

Anonymous · Answer

Hi, I'm the poster.
CalifJim, thanks for explain, but I want to know if asking question like If
If there was no food, would you eat humans ? (The subjunctive mood ?)
If there is no food, will / do you eat humans ? (The indicative mood ?)

Which tense of Be is more popular or more common appears ?

Also
You got love, family, and wealthy. But that wasn't enough for you ?
You got love, family, and wealthy. But that isn't enough for you ?

I can't determine which to use.
I predict that I'd use wasn't when taking to a DYING man, and use isn't as normal conversation to the man.
Am I right ?

Thanks for all help.

Avangi · Answer

AnonymousI thought 'would' should not go with if...is or any verb in present tense, but I was wrong.
Is this correct to the ears of native speakers?
How is combination 'is' and 'would' different in interpretation from 'is' and 'will'? CJ is speaking to what's correct grammatically, and I'm speaking to the question of what is acceptable to my native ear. I don't pretend to have learned the conditional codes.
So many strange things seem possible if we assume the right context:
If he stole your laptop, would you report him to the police?
If he is the one who stole your laptop, will you report him to the police?
If it turns out that he stole your laptop, will/would you report him to the police?

I personally use "would" more than I should, I suspect because of its "indirect" quality. I guess you could say there's an implied conditional:
[If it was/were okay with you and everybody else,] Would you go to the dance with me?

Will you please help me? Would you please help me?
These both seem like present tense.

But I guess technically we're not allowed to say, "If I can find a dollar for you, would you please help me?"

How is combination 'is' and 'would' different in interpretation from 'is' and 'will'?

If there is no food, would you eat humans ?

I can't advise you that this is correct. I hesitate to use the expression "implied conditional," because I believe that has a special meaning in the code.

If I simply ask the question without the condition,
(Will you eat humans? / Would you eat humans?), what's the difference in interpretation?
I think the "would" implies unspecified conditions.
I think that if you use it in place of "will" in a present tense indicative mood conditional, it simply implies unspecified conditions in addition to the one which is stated.

But that's just my ear talking.

Anonymous · Answer

Thank you, Avangi, for taking time to assist me on my questions. I really appreciate you explaining this in detail and it was really helpful.

AvangiCJ is speaking to what's correct grammatically, and I'm speaking to the question of what is acceptable to my native ear.

I see, in conditionals, the combination of 'is' or any verb in present tense and 'would' sounds natural or is acceptable to a native ear, although it is not grammatically correct. Therefore, the combination should not be used in formal writing, but it's OK in casual conversations. Please confirm if I've understood correctly.

AvangiI think the "would" implies unspecified conditions.
I think that if you use it in place of "will" in a present tense indicative mood conditional, it simply implies unspecified conditions in addition to the one which is stated.

Is the following probably how it appears if I've understood your explanation correctly?

If there is no food (and if it were OK with you), would you eat humans?

Again, thanks so much in advance for your help.

Avangi · Answer

AnonymousI see, in conditionals, the combination of 'is' or any verb in present tense and 'would' sounds natural or is acceptable to a native ear, although it is not grammatically correct. Therefore, the combination should not be used in formal writing, but it's OK in casual conversations. Please confirm if I've understood correctly.

I suppose that would be a good position to take if you wish to play it safe.

I'm thinking now of my American Heritage Dictionary, which has a "Linguistics Board" of six members, and a "Usage Panel" of around 200 members, each of whom is a recognized authority in some particular field.
When a usage is in any way controversial, the panel will often "vote" on its acceptability. These people may not be professional grammarians, but they are all recognized professionals in their respective fields, and know how the language is used within their areas of expertise.
The surprising thing is that they may come to a 60/40 split on whether or not a given usage is acceptable.

I think the conditional rules/codes were designed in an attempt to help ESL learners deal with some strange conventions. I don't believe they cover every situation. When everyone agrees on whose book is the final authority, we can give you a clear answer.

[Y]

[N]

If by "formal," you mean something you're going to be graded on, it would be wise to follow the code.

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