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ESL forum >
Grammar and Linguistics > the meaning of "would"
the meaning of "would"
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Lovely Lana
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the meaning of "would"
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Hi everyone,
1. In the sentence: Sheila will never forgive me if I miss the party, and she would be right what function does "would" have?
It �s not "used to", not future in the past, not conditional, why do we use it here then?
2. What´s the meaning of "for the price of a cup of tea you can save a child´s life"?
Thanks in advance
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7 Nov 2013
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EstherLee76
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In the first one, "would" is conditional -- you �re talking about an unreal situation (If I miss the party). It �s a mix and match because the first part is first conditional (will / present tense) and then goes to second conditional (would be). I can �t help you with number two. |
7 Nov 2013
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Lovely Lana
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Thanks a lot for your reply, Esther, why then can �t I say she will be right? Since the first sentence is in the first conditional...
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7 Nov 2013
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Luisella
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Hi lovely Lana, I think that the sentence in question 2 could be used as a catchphrase for a charity program, when they invite you to donate a small amount of money to support their program. I remember something like that was used by UNICEF: they invited people to donate 20/30 � a month which is more or less what you pay for a daily newspaper. The amount of your donation could be used to help starving children. |
7 Nov 2013
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EstherLee76
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You can say "She will be right". It just means something different. That means that you are going to miss the party and that she is right not to forgive you -- it �s no longer an unreal situation. If you say "She would be right" it means you are not going to miss the party; you �re just imagining what would happen if you did. (Hope I �m not confusing you more!) |
7 Nov 2013
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yanogator
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Esther is explaining it well. It �s really just an informal mixture of the two conditionals. The way it would be said in formal writing is entirely second conditional: Sheila would never forgive me if I missed the party, and she would be right. The way it �s worded is just trying to make it sound more solid, while still being unreal. Grammatically, it is very awkward, but it expresses the idea well. Bruce |
7 Nov 2013
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