The grammatical justification provided was that 1), in a SVOOC-type sentence, when an object takes a verb-based component as an object complement it /must/ be a past participle, and 2), causatives especially take past participles due to passivity, and since in this case the roof is collapsed by an external force, using 'collapsed' is correct in the same way we can say 'I had my shoes shined'. Hello, I recently came across the following sentence: The following is copied and pasted from the original question. While whether this qualifies as a /verb/ question is something I am still unsure of, but nowhere more suitable could be found. Hello! I recently submitted this question via webform and was kindly redirected here. However, a sentence like 'He said that he would buy a car' is future in the past. 'He said that he had a car' is also not future in the past, because we understand that he had the car at the time that he said it (not after he said it). So, 'He said that he has a car' is not future in the past, because 'he has a car' is not in the past. From that time, 'would buy' happens afterwards, so it is in the future with reference to 'thought' (although both actions occurred in the past). Also, the focus is on the time of one past action, but it looks forward to another action that would happen later on (though still in the past).įor example: 'He thought he would buy one the next day.' Both actions (thought / would buy) are in the past. That is when there are two actions, and both occurred in the past. But these are not examples of Future in the Past. Those sentences are all grammatically fine and their meaning is clear. They would have gone out if the weather had been better. I would have called you, but I had forgotten my phone. I could have gone to Mexico for my holiday but it was too expensive. We use would have and could have to talk about something that was possible in the past but did not happen: We use should have as the past form of should: We use may have, might have and could have to show that something has possibly happened in the past: You could get a good meal for a pound when I was a boy.

Our guests were arriving soon and we had to get their room ready. John was going to drive and Mary was going to follow on her bicycle. He thought he would buy one the next day.Įveryone was excited. When we talk about the future from a time in the past we use: GapFillTyping_MTYzMTc= The future in the past MultipleChoice_MTYzMTU= Present perfect and past simple 2 When we were children we have been to California.īut we can use the present perfect with adverbials which refer to a time which is not yet finished: today We do not use the present perfect with adverbials which refer to a finished past time:

for something that happened in the past but is important in the present:.

I have been working at the university for over ten years.

for something that started in the past and continues in the present:.

GapFillTyping_MTY0NjM= The past and the present MultipleChoice_MTY0NjE= Past simple, continuous and perfect 2 They would have bought a new computer if they had saved enough money. They wanted to buy a new computer, but they hadn't saved enough money. When we had done all our shopping, we caught the bus home. Helen suddenly remembered she had left her keys in the car. We use the past perfect when we are looking back from a point in the past to something earlier in the past: GapFillTyping_MTY0NTk= The past in the past MultipleChoice_MTY0NTg= Past simple and past continuous 2 He broke his leg when he was playing rugby.

for something that happened before and after another action in the past:.

for something that happened before and after a specific time in the past:.

MultipleSelection_MTY0NTY= Past simple, used to and would 2 (NOT would feel) Past simple, used to and would 1 We would used to feel very cold in winter. He would looked much older than he does now. We use the past simple or used to instead: We do not normally use would with stative verbs. They would often visit friends in Europe. Most evenings, he would take the dog for a walk. Most evenings, we used to stay at home and watch DVDs. Most evenings, we stayed at home and watched DVDs. When we talk about something that happened several times in the past, we use the past simple:

something that was true for some time in the past:Įverybody worked hard through the winter.

something that happened once in the past:.

Level: intermediate Past events and situations

Just to clarify a confusion