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Anonymous Posted 11 years ago
Grammar
Why is this wrong?
Hey guys,
my English teacher marked the following sentence in my exam as incorrect:
"Hard work and stamina would be the key to her success."
She wrote that "would be" should be replaced with something else. The problem is that I am not sure how to phrase it correctly. I'd be glad if you could help. Thanks in advance!
my English teacher marked the following sentence in my exam as incorrect:
"Hard work and stamina would be the key to her success."
She wrote that "would be" should be replaced with something else. The problem is that I am not sure how to phrase it correctly. I'd be glad if you could help. Thanks in advance!
Top answer
The sentence is possible in the right context, for example, When she entered parliament, nobody thought that this quiet young woman would ever attain ministerial office, but they were to be surprised . Hard work and stamina would be the key to her success.
- The sentence is possible in the right context, for example, When she entered parliament, nobody thought that this quiet young woman would ever attain ministerial office, but they were to be surprised .
- Hard work and stamina would be the key to her success.
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7 Answers
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The sentence is possible in the right context, for example,
When she entered parliament, nobody thought that this quiet young woman would ever attain ministerial office, but they were to be surprised. Hard work and stamina would be the key to her success.
When she entered parliament, nobody thought that this quiet young woman would ever attain ministerial office, but they were to be surprised. Hard work and stamina would be the key to her success.
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Thanks for the answer! The sentence before that was:
"Despite her success she doesn't consider herself as being more intelligent than her former high school classmates. Hard work and stamina would be the key to her success."
Thinking about the sentence a bit more maybe "were" instead of "would be" could be the right choice, right?
"Despite her success she doesn't consider herself as being more intelligent than her former high school classmates. Hard work and stamina would be the key to her success."
Thinking about the sentence a bit more maybe "were" instead of "would be" could be the right choice, right?
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'Would be' is not wrong here, depending on the meaning you want..
Consider these differences in meaning.
Hard work and stamina were the key to her success.This simply states a fact about the past.
This is probably what your teacher wants
Consider these differences in meaning.
Hard work and stamina were the key to her success.This simply states a fact about the past.
This is probably what your teacher wants
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It depends on whether you're talking about the future and making a prediction:
"Hard work and stamina will be the key to her success."
Or whether you're reporting about a prediction in the past:
"Even as a girl, Eleanor Roosevelt understood that hard work and stamina would be the key to her success."
"Hard work and stamina will be the key to her success."
Or whether you're reporting about a prediction in the past:
"Even as a girl, Eleanor Roosevelt understood that hard work and stamina would be the key to her success."
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What I wanted to say was that she states that the key to her success is hard work. So reported speech. And I probably misuse the subjunctive
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AnonymousDespite her success she doesn't consider herself as being more intelligent than her former high school classmates.She is already successful.
Anonymous"Despite her success she doesn't consider herself as being more intelligent than her former high school classmates.Present tense. Presen
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