Common mistakes – Innovations page 74/4
So here are the sentences and my suggestions for correct sentences as well as explanations taken from our Innovations book:
- The dentist said I'll probably have to take a tooth out.
I would say: The dentist said I would probably have to take out a tooth. → In reporting speech, the modal verb “will” becomes “would” when the verb in the reporting clause (The dentist said …) is a past tense word.
- I wish I wouldn't be so fat!
I wish I wasn't so fat! → When we talk about things we feel bad or disappointed about now (in the present), we use “wish + past simple verb. (see G12)
- It would cause a riot if they would do that here.
It would cause a riot if they did that here. → We use second conditionals to talk about ways in which we imagine the present or future could be different. The result part of the sentence can use “would” to talk about things we imagine as likely results, “might” and “could” to talk about possible results “could” to talk about results that someone was able to do and “wouldn't” to talk about things we imagine as very unlikely results. (see G13)
- He's quite shifty. He's never giving a straight answer.
He's quite shifty. He would never give a straight answer. → We use “wouldn't” to talk about the repeated refusal of people or things to do what we want them to do. (see G3)
- His car mustn't have been that expensive, because he doesn't exactly earn a fortune, does he?
His car can't have been that expensive, because he doesn't exactly earn a fortune, does he? → We often speculate/guess about things based on the evidence available to us. When we say “must” we are talking about things we're 95% sure are true, “can't” to talk about things we're 95% sure aren't true and “might” to talk about things we think are possibly true.
To make a guess in the present, we use must/can't/might + the base form of the verb or be + -ing.
To make a guess in the past, we use must/can't/might + have + past participle or been+-ing. (see G10)
- I was disappointed bitterly with the result.
I was bitterly disappointed with the result. → When we add an adverb before an adjective to modify its meaning, we have to remember that these adverb + adjective constructions are collocations which are quite fixed. “Bitterly disappointed” is one of them. (see G8)
Feel free to add better solutions and/or explanations. :)