- Home
- 1. Introduction to time, tense and aspect
- 2. Past time
- 2.1 Past simple
- 2.2 Past continuous
- 2.3 The difference between the past simple and the past continuous
- 2.4 Past perfect
- 2.5 The difference between the past simple and the past perfect
- 2.6 Past perfect continuous
- 2.7 The difference between the past perfect and the past perfect continuous
- 2.8 Present simple to express past
- 2.9 USED TO for past habits
- Exercise 1
- Exercise 2
- Exercise 3
- Exercise 4
- Exercise 5
- 3. Present time
- 4. Future time
- 4.1 Future simple
- 4.2 Future continuous
- 4.3 Future perfect
- 4.4 Future perfect continuous
- 4.5 BE GOING TO
- 4.6 Present simple for fixed future events
- 4.7 Present continuous for fixed future arrangements
- 4.8 The difference between WILL, BE GOING TO and the present continuous for future events
- 4.9 Future time clauses
- Exercise 1
- Exercise 2
- Exercise 3
- Exercise 4
- Exercise 5
- 5. Modals
- 5.1 Types of modals
- 5.2 Modals to express ability: CAN, COULD, BE ABLE TO
- 5.3 Modals to express advice: SHOULD, OUGHT TO, HAD BETTER
- 5.4 Modals to express criticism: CAN, COULD, MIGHT, SHOULD
- 5.5 Modals to express deduction: MUST, CAN'T, COULDN'T
- 5.6 USED TO
- 5.7 Modals to express intentions: BE GOING TO, WILL
- 5.8 Modals to express obligation: MUST, HAVE (GOT) TO
- 5.9 NEED
- 5.10 Modals to express obligation: SHOULD, OUGHT TO
- 5.11 Modals to express offers: CAN, COULD, WILL, SHALL, MAY
- 5.12 Modals to express permission / prohibition: CAN, COULD, MAY, MIGHT, BE ALLOWED TO, MUSTN'T
- 5.13 Modals to express possibility: MAY, MIGHT, COULD
- 5.14 Modals to express predictions: BE GOING TO, WILL
- 5.15 Modals to express requests: CAN, COULD, WILL, WOULD
- 5.16 Modals to express suggestions: SHOULD, COULD, MIGHT, SHALL
- 5.17 The modal WOULD to express unreal situations
- 5.18 Overview of modals
- 5.19 Modals and adverbs
- Exercise 1
- Exercise 2
- Exercise 3
- Exercise 4
- Exercise 5
- 6. Conditionals and unreal tenses
- 7. Indirect speech
- 7.1 The difference between direct and indirect speech
- 7.2 Punctuation in direct speech
- 7.3 Changes in indirect speech
- 7.4 Reporting questions
- 7.5 Reporting statements
- 7.6 Reporting imperatives
- 7.7 Reporting verb + THAT-clause
- 7.8 Reporting verb + THAT-clause with SHOULD + infinitive
- 7.9 Reporting verb + THAT-clause with the present subjunctive
- 7.10 Reporting verb + gerund
- 7.11 Reporting verb + TO-infinitive
- 7.12 Reporting verb + object + TO-infinitive
- 7.13 SAY, TELL and ASK
- 7.14 Impersonal reporting
- Exercise 1
- Exercise 2
- Exercise 3
- Exercise 4
- Exercise 5
- Exercise 6
- Progress test 1
- 8. Passive voice and causative structures
- 8.1 Passive voice
- 8.1.1 The difference between the active and passive voice
- 8.1.2 Form: passive voice
- 8.1.3 Verbs which cannot be used in the passive voice
- 8.1.4 Ditransitive verbs in the passive voice
- 8.1.5 The agent with the passive voice
- 8.1.6 The use of the passive voice
- 8.1.7 The passive with GET
- 8.1.8 Passive voice with reporting verbs
- 8.2 Causative structures
- Exercise 1
- Exercise 2
- Exercise 3
- Exercise 4
- Exercise 5
- Exercise 6
- 8.1 Passive voice
- 9. Non-finite verb forms
- 9.1 The difference between finite and non-finite verb forms
- 9.2 The infinitive
- 9.2.1 The forms of the infinitive
- 9.2.2 The "subject" of the infinitive
- 9.2.3 The TO-infinitive to replace a relative clause
- 9.2.4 The TO-infinitive after passive reporting verbs
- 9.2.5 The infinitive after modals
- 9.2.6 DO, DOES, DID + bare infinitive
- 9.2.7 SEE, WATCH, HEAR, LISTEN, FEEL, SMELL, NOTICE + object + bare infinitive
- 9.2.8 APPEAR, HAPPEN, PROVE, SEEM, TEND, TURN OUT + TO-infinitive
- 9.2.9 HAVE, GET, LET, MAKE + object + infinitive
- 9.2.10 Verb + TO-infinitive
- 9.2.11 Verb + object + TO-infinitive
- 9.2.12 Adjective + TO-infinitive
- 9.2.13 The infinitive of purpose
- 9.2.14 The infinitive of result
- 9.2.15 Question word + TO-infinitive
- 9.2.16 Introductory infinitive clauses
- 9.3 The gerund
- 9.3.1 The forms of the gerund
- 9.3.2 The "subject" of the gerund
- 9.3.3 The gerund as subject
- 9.3.4 The gerund as a subject complement
- 9.3.5 The gerund as the object of a verb
- 9.3.6 Verb + gerund
- 9.3.7 Preposition + gerund
- 9.3.8 Verb + preposition + gerund
- 9.3.9 The gerund used in compound nouns
- 9.3.10 Other expressions followed by the gerund
- 9.3.11 Verbs followed by the TO-infinitive or gerund with no difference in meaning
- 9.3.12 Verbs followed by the TO-infinitive or gerund with a difference in meaning
- 9.4 The participle
- 9.4.1 The forms of the participle
- 9.4.2 The "subject" of the participle
- 9.4.3 The present participle used to form the continuous aspect
- 9.4.4 The past participle used to form the perfect aspect
- 9.4.5 The past participle used to form the passive voice
- 9.4.6 The present and past participles used as adjectives
- 9.4.7 SEE, WATCH, HEAR, LISTEN, FEEL, SMELL, NOTICE + object + present participle
- 9.4.8 CATCH, FIND, LEAVE + object + present participle
- 9.4.9 COME, GO + present participle
- 9.4.10 SPEND, WASTE + object + present participle
- 9.4.11 HAVE, GET + object + past participle
- 9.4.12 Participle clauses
- 9.5 The difference between the gerund and the present participle
- Exercise 1
- Exercise 2
- Exercise 3
- Exercise 4
- Exercise 5
- 10. Relative clauses
- 10.1 What is a relative clause?
- 10.2 Defining relative clause
- 10.3 Non-defining relative clause
- 10.4 The difference between defining and non-defining relative clauses
- 10.5 Sentential relative clause
- 10.6 Relative pronouns: WHO, WHOM, WHOSE, WHICH, THAT
- 10.7 Relative adverbs: WHERE, WHEN, WHY
- 10.8 Prepositions in relative clauses
- 10.9 Non-finite relative clauses
- 10.10 WHAT and WHATEVER
- 10.11 Cleft sentences
- 10.12 Pseudo-cleft sentences
- Exercise 1
- Exercise 2
- Exercise 3
- Exercise 4
- Exercise 5
- Exercise 6
- 11. Inversion
- 12. Articles and nouns
- 12.1 Articles
- 12.2 Countable and uncountable nouns
- 12.2.1 The difference between countable and uncountable nouns
- 12.2.2 Nouns with countable and uncountable meanings
- 12.2.3 Determiners with countable and uncountable nouns (SOME, ANY, NO, MANY, MUCH, FEW, LITTLE etc.)
- 12.2.4 Partitive expressions with uncountable nouns
- 12.2.5 Nouns which are always plural
- 12.2.6 Nouns with a plural form and a singular meaning
- 12.2.7 Nouns with the same singular and plural forms
- 12.2.8 Irregular plural forms
- Exercise 1
- Exercise 2
- Exercise 3
- Exercise 4
- Exercise 5
- Exercise 6
- Exercise 7
- Progress test 2
- Appendix
5.17 The modal WOULD to express unreal situations
Present and future
Would + infinitive can refer to unreal situations in the present or future. An unreal situation is one which is not true in the present or one which may or may not happen in the future:
It would be nice to live by the sea. (I don't live by the sea)
It would be great to go hiking in the Appalachians again. (I may or may not go)
Would is often used in the main clause of a sentence in the second conditional:
I wouldn't do that if I were you. (I am not you)
I would help you if you asked me to. (you may or may not ask me)
Past
Would + perfect infinitive refers to unreal situations in the past. We imagine a hypothetical past situation which did not happen. We often use an if-clause to describe the situation:
It would have been wonderful to meet you in person.
I would have helped you if you had asked me to. (you didn't ask me)