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Anonymous Posted 18 years ago
Grammar
Type 1 conditional sentences in reported speech
Hello everyone,
I would appreciate your help on the following matter:
Original sentence: We shall go to the river tomorrow if it's hot.
Reported speech: She said that they would go to the river the next day if it was hot.
Somehow, "was" doesn't sound natural to me, because in other types of conditional sentences you always hear "if it were", and I couldn't find any rules about this case. Do conditional sentences follow the general rules of reporting?
Thanks!
I would appreciate your help on the following matter:
Original sentence: We shall go to the river tomorrow if it's hot.
Reported speech: She said that they would go to the river the next day if it was hot.
Somehow, "was" doesn't sound natural to me, because in other types of conditional sentences you always hear "if it were", and I couldn't find any rules about this case. Do conditional sentences follow the general rules of reporting?
Thanks!
Top answer
Your reported version with was is fine. Save were (which is the present subjunctive form) for present conditions (in formal sentences) contrary to fact: We would have gone to the river today if it were hot (but it's not hot).
- Your reported version with was is fine.
- Save were (which is the present subjunctive form) for present conditions (in formal sentences) contrary to fact: We would have gone to the river today if it were hot (but it's not hot).
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3 Answers
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Your reported version with was is fine. Save were (which is the present subjunctive form) for present conditions (in formal sentences) contrary to fact: We would have gone to the river today if it were hot (but it's not hot).
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Mister MicawberYour reported version with was is fine. Save were (which is the present subjunctive form) for present conditions (in formal sentences) contrary to fact: We would have gone to the river today if it were hot (but it's not hot).In other words, according to the above examples, when it is 'tomorrow', the repor
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No. Reported speech is always in the past. The particular word choice (today, tomorrow) is irrelevant.
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