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fw
Joined: 12 Oct 2005
Posts: 361
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 Posted: Sat Oct 29, 2005 5:34 am Post subject: would |
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Hello everyone.
Grammar books say �would� for typical behavior in the past can not refer to past states.
Is the underlined �would� below grammatically correct then?
My class mates would call out, "Trees! Flowers! The Great Wall!" � The only problem was, I never saw anything - just darkness. Sometimes I would look at my classmates from the corner of my eye. There they would be, sitting on the floor with their little fingers pressed against their eyes. I thought of the wonderful things they must be seeing: Chinese men all in black with red shoes that turned up at the tips; a crocodile looking out of a river; a little man with red eyes looking out from under a funny hat and then disappearing into a deep hole in the ground. Why couldn't I see these things? I closed my eyes again. Blackness�.
From �The dance of the Chicken Feet� by Bailey White
(http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:IWfTACjkLyAJ:file.gotchan.nobody.jp/english2/Reading1.txt+%22The+dance+of+the+chicken+feet%22&hl=ja)
Any comment would be appreciated.
Best regards,
fw |
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dabro
Joined: 10 Oct 2005
Posts: 117
Location: California, USA
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| Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2005 8:37 am Post subject: Re: would |
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| fw wrote: |
Hello everyone.
Grammar books say �would� for typical behavior in the past can not refer to past states.
Is the underlined �would� below grammatically correct then?
My class mates would call out, "Trees! Flowers! The Great Wall!" � The only problem was, I never saw anything - just darkness. Sometimes I would look at my classmates from the corner of my eye. There they would be, sitting on the floor with their little fingers pressed against their eyes. I thought of the wonderful things they must be seeing: Chinese men all in black with red shoes that turned up at the tips; a crocodile looking out of a river; a little man with red eyes looking out from under a funny hat and then disappearing into a deep hole in the "ground. Why couldn't I see these things? I closed my eyes again. Blackness�.
From �The dance of the Chicken Feet� by Bailey White
(http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:IWfTACjkLyAJ:file.gotchan.nobody.jp/english2/Reading1.txt+%22The+dance+of+the+chicken+feet%22&hl=ja)
Any comment would be appreciated.
Best regards,
fw |
"Would" is often used to indicate characteristic activity:
customary: After work, he would walk to his home in West Hartford.
typical (casual): She would cause the whole family to be late, every time.
In American English, "used to" is more frequently used.
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If a man constantly aspires is he not elevated?
Henry David Thoreau
Peace,
David |
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fw
Joined: 12 Oct 2005
Posts: 361
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| Posted: Thu Nov 03, 2005 1:14 pm Post subject: would |
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Thank you for your explanation, dabro.
But my question is:
Is the underlined �would� below grammatically correct then?
Is your answer "yes"?
My class mates would call out, "Trees! Flowers! The Great Wall!" � The only problem was, I never saw anything - just darkness. Sometimes I would look at my classmates from the corner of my eye. There they would be, sitting on the floor with their little fingers pressed against their eyes. I thought of the wonderful things they must be seeing: Chinese men all in black with red shoes that turned up at the tips; a crocodile looking out of a river; a little man with red eyes looking out from under a funny hat and then disappearing into a deep hole in the ground. Why couldn't I see these things? I closed my eyes again. Blackness�.
fw |
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