| 234712 |
Re: question
Привет Наталья,
“Could” is both the simple past tense of “can” (e.g. “He could grow wheat when he worked on a farm”) and the conditional mood of “can” (e.g. “She could watch the eclipse tomorrow if she has proper eye protection”). It can also be used in polite requests instead of “would” (e.g. “Could you pass the salt, please?”), although this question really asks about ability rather than willingness.
“Should” can mean “be obliged to” (e.g. “You should wear a seat belt in a car”), “ought to” (e.g. “We should brush our teeth after every meal”), or “will be likely to” (e.g. “It should be hot in the summer”). It can also be used as an auxiliary for the present subjunctive (e.g. “If I should miss my train, he will call you”). It is also the simple past tense of “shall” (e.g. “She told him that I should be unavailable”). It can also be used for “would” for first-person subjects (e.g. “I should like to take a bath”).
“Would” is both the simple past tense of “will” (e.g. “He would grow wheat when the demand was high”) and the conditional mood of “will” (e.g. “She would watch eclipses if she could travel to where they were happening”). It is also used in polite requests (“Would you pass the salt, please?”).
|
Language pair: Russian; English
This is a reply to message # 234701
|
|
|
