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#189894 03/13/10 08:57 PM
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tsuwm Offline OP
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what is the term for the style, or voice, that would use 'would' for the past tense? e.g., "The second half of the game would be defined by..."

tsuwm #189895 03/13/10 09:38 PM
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Well, I'd call it the conditional mood (link).


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In the following case, "would" is used to express the past, but it doesn't seem conditional to me:

"Our parents would take us to see relatives on Sunday."

What am I missing?


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Seems to me in tsuwm's example he is using it in a past narrative where the narrative has not yet reached a point that is, for us, also in the past. A conditional mood would be something like "I would help you if I knew what you were looking for."

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yes, there's no actual 'condition' involved in my example; i.e., no if statement.

here's an entire example (please forgive/ignore the sport context - it happens to be where I see a lot of this):

“The second half of the game would be defined by offensive runs from both teams and tough, physical play. In the third quarter, the Lakers, making their push to try and win this game early, would eventually extend their lead to 15, but Phoenix would show their determination to not go quietly and went on their own run. The Suns took advantage of some sloppy Lakers play and raced the floor for easy baskets. By the time the third quarter was over, Phoenix would cut the Lakers lead to four and I think all Lakers fans were prepared for another close game that could come down to the final possession. And while this game wouldn’t be that close. . . “

this all happened in the past, of course. : )

it all seems a bit.. contrived to me, esp. for a sports blog. (and another thing - it's not consistently used.)

Last edited by tsuwm; 03/13/10 11:53 PM.
tsuwm #189904 03/14/10 01:36 AM
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Another seldom-used construction with "would" is very much conditional, but the mood is indicated more by the subjunctive (I think) of the main verb:

"I would that she were here now."

There's an implied "if" in this case, since it's clear she is not here now. The "would" injects wishfulness, but it's hard for me to see where it contributes to the conditional mood of the sentence, which is established by "were."


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Originally Posted By: beck123
What am I missing?


Nothing... "would" has more than one use.

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Beck's latest reminds me that the origin of would is as the past tense of will; will not as a periphrastic future marker but will meaning 'desire'. This, however, would reinforce my claim that would in the original question was indicating that it was being used in a historical future sense.

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Is would used as a replacement for used to? If so, used to is firmly in the past. (Not in the original question. That appears to be a - present continuous tense in the past!)

Avy #189914 03/14/10 01:35 PM
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It seems more like a future tense, expressed as past events:

"After having lost their first two matches, they would go on to win in the finals."


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