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Anonymous Posted 16 years ago
Grammar

Would

Hello,

In past tense, we write 'no person answered'. Is it also okay to write maintaining the same tense: No person would answer.

b) Also regarding would in conditionals: He believes that his dad would give him a present if he did something nice. (is this right in present tense)

C) They look clueless enough to have mistaken black for white. (is this okay in present tense).

Regards,
  

Top answer

Anonymous In past tense, we write 'no person answered'. Is it also okay to write maintaining the same tense: No person would answer. Yes.

— Avangi

  • Anonymous In past tense, we write 'no person answered'.
  • Is it also okay to write maintaining the same tense: No person would answer.
  • Yes.
  • It implies that they were there but declined to answer.
  • They chose not to answer.
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3 Answers
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Anonymous In past tense, we write 'no person answered'. Is it also okay to write maintaining the same tense: No person would answer. Yes. It implies that they were there but declined to answer. They chose not to answer.

b) Also regarding would in conditionals: He believes that his dad would give him a present if
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AnonymousIn past tense, we write 'no person answered'. Is it also okay to write maintaining the same tense: No person would answer.

Yes, 'no person answered' is a perfectly straightforward use of the preterite to locate an event in past time. 'No person would answer', however, is interesting because its location in past time is marked by the preterite mod
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BillJHe believes that his dad would give him a present if he did something nice. (is this right in present tense)
No, the preterite modal 'would' is incorrect here - the modal 'will' + the plain form of the verb 'give' is used to mark futurity here: He believes that his dad WILL give him a present. if he did
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