Questions tagged [will-would]
This tag is for questions asking about difference between two auxiliary verbs: will and would. Questions that only have to do with one of them can also use this tag, because the two modal verbs share a lot in common and can be easily confused.
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"Will" vs "would"
Here is the sentence from the test
Without the Sun there _____________ no light, no heat, no energy of any kind.
a) will be
b) would be
c) will
The answer is obviously "b" because it is ...
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"Would have loved" in the book narration
I'm reading Bloodline by F. Paul Wilson and came across the following snippet:
Jack needed to read this. He'd have loved to take it home to pore
over, but Bolton would know he'd been invaded when he ...
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"Would have been" Vs "Would be"
What's the difference between these two examples:
1."Your father would be proud of us."
2."Your father would have been proud of us."
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How paradoxical that the world’s greatest chefs
How paradoxical that the world’s greatest chefs have all been men!
Cooking would clearly seem to be a field that lies exclusively within
women’s realm, yet the annals of cookery are replete with ...
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Would vs will degree of certainty
What is the difference between these two sentences?
1) My daily time with Sandra is something I wouldn't trade for anything.
2) My daily time with Sandra is something I won't trade for anything.
I ...
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"Would be" usage
She would be sixteen.
She would be his wife.
What do these two sentences mean?
Do they mean that “she is sixteen” and “she is his wife”? If not what is the difference between these two ...
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"Would have" in texts describing history
I have noted that in books/articles dealing with history, "would have" is often used. E.g.:
Many of the tools used by Woodland people would have been familiar to
their Archaic ancestors.
...
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Will and would for "has the capacity to"
Source (Longman's English Grammar, 20th Edition 2003)
page No 247
I've read in Longman English grammar.pdf that will and would can suggest 'has the capacity to' and would is more tentative than will-...
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What's meaning "would" in this sentence?
What's the usage and meaning of "would" in this sentence:
He (Sherlock Holmes) would undoubtedly have been baffled by the way the crime was
committed.
In this sentence, why is “have” used ...
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If current results hold, Man City would win PL title
The line under the scoreboard says
If current results hold, Man City would win PL title.
I am totally confused about why would is there. It describes a particular condition (winning the game) and ...
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It would have to rain today, of all days!
It would have to rain today, of all days!
https://www.collinsdictionary.com/us/dictionary/english-spanish/it-would-have-to-rain-today-of-all-days
What meaning of would is used here?
According to OED, ...
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'Will' vs. 'would'
I am writing an essay, and I am confused about some tenses that I have to use:
For a while, the situation seems to improve, but Mary decides to
finally kill herself (shortly after that). However, ...
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Will Trump build the wall
I wonder when someone writes down the following sentence as a headline of a writing
Will Trump build the wall?
Could it have two meaning as follows
"Is Trump going to build the wall?" ( just ...
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Will or would in future time
Why in following news they use "she'd" and not "she will" to talking about the future ?
And crucially, it's not clear how far she'd actually go in criticising Vladimir Putin himself, a close family ...
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Question related to past tense of the verb
Is following sentence in past tense? And if it is, then why we don't use helped?
She said she would help me when she finished her work.
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"Water will boil at 100°C" and "The vine wouldn't grow"
I have read in Longman English Grammar, page No 246,
that we use 'will' and 'would' to describe natural tendency
Like the simple present tense [> 9.6-8] will (with a 3rd person subject)
can ...
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Does 'would' sometimes substitute other modals?
Without you, I couldn't have done it.
Without you, I wouldn't have done it.
Is there any meaningful difference between those two above? In my humble opinion, the first one sounds as "I wasn't ...
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"will" vs "would" in hypothetical situations
I am aware that in hypothetical situations one should use "would" instead of "will". But I came across this text:
The World Bank report addresses a particular worry of Russian
authorities: that ...
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1
answer
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Modal verbs: difference betweeen ¨Would¨ and ¨Could¨
I have a question: when I could use the modal verb ¨Could¨ and when ¨Would¨ because for me is similar. I know ¨Would¨ we can use it in very polite situations like ¨would you like a cup of coffee¨. But ...
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What's wrong with "university students would have to choose study over work, especially if they are undertaking a degree in theoretical subjects."?
The following is a question in a Japanese University's entrance exam.
There is an error in the following sentence. Correct the sentence by locating the wrong word from (1)-(4) and replacing it with ...
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if condition and would
Consider the following two sentences:
If I had a free year, I would have traveled the world.
If I had a free year, I would travel the world.
Is sentence 1 referring past not probable thing?
Is ...
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The usage of would in "when a skeptic would deride their work"
I'd like to know what "would" exactly means here? Please help me I couldn't figure it out no matter how much I tried. Thanks a lot.
The Wright brothers didn't become distraught when a skeptic would ...
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what does "would" mean in this paragraph?
My leg burned and was angry from the lead ball that was lodged in it just above my knee. I felt sleepy and everything would go black. Then I'd wake up again. I wanted to go back to our farm in Ohio ...
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Will be or would be?
I looked at a text a friend of mine wrote. She almost always uses "would be" or "would have" instead of "will be" or "will have".
An international team of scientists collected insects with so-called “...
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Using first person as a polite way to ask second person to do something
I emailed someone asking for a piece of information. He wrote back:
"I'd contact X for the latest data."
I'm having trouble understanding what he (a native speaker) meant by using the word would. It ...
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What tense is "would" in "...and I would go on living, like that,..."? Is it past or present?
SOURCE (Paris Review, "Breaking It Down" by Lydia Davis)
I was listening to the radio to improve my listening skills ( because usually I listen and read transcript at the same time ) and ...
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A question about modals
What is the difference in meaning between:
Would the boss cancel the meeting?
Will the boss cancel the meeting?
When should one use first, and when second?
user126190
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would + verb construction
I've been learning English for some time now, but have a huge problems with all constructions with 'would'.
For example today I found that out in one of the NYT articles:
[...]He wouldn’t learn ...
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Understanding would
He would do it
What does sentence this mean?? Does this mean any of the following four ways
1) He will do it (if some conditions are met)
2) He will do it (if some conditions are met, but now ...
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Difference between "will" and "would" for predictions
What is the difference between will and would in the following sentence? In the following news link, why is would used instead of will?
Here is the link and the headline:
Why the US would never ...
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There will be or would be
When talking abouts facts should we use would or will ?
There would/will be no life without water.
There would/will be no women without men.
There would/will be no theft without thieves.
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but other ladies carried such things, so she also **would have one
Next she selected a parasol from a large and varied assortment in the rear of the store. Not that she had any idea what it was used for; but other ladies carried such things, so she also would have ...
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Whatever she said, I will/would insist on doing that tomorrow
In this following sentence,
which one is better:
whatever she said, I will/would insist on doing that tomorrow.(now I'm speaking)
Because we can just use "would" in the following sentence right?
...
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Difference in meaning? "Would" vs "shall"
What is the difference between these two sentences?
What would we crime reporters do without juicy murders?
What shall we crime reporters do without juicy murders?
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Is it okay to use 'would' in past tense?
I was having breakfast with my older brother and then I asked him to 'Can I pass?'.
He answered 'Yes you can, if you were not this kind then I ..... not let you pass.' We had a argue about what we ...
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Difference between "difficult to believe that the situation {would/will} return to normal"
While reading a newspaper, I found this sentence
Even if an argument is put forward that many of today's excesses do not reflect long term reality, It is difficult to believe that the situation would ...
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Doesn't or wouldn't?
Here is my phrase from Stack Overflow question.
How to create a universal function so that it doesn't have to be rewritten for every new polynomial degree NN?
Could (would, should, arrrgh) I write ...
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'Will' instead of 'Would' with a past tense sentence
I've bumped into a YouTube clip (Here is the extracted text for the sake of convenience and context) that deals with the difference between 'Will' and 'Would'.
Among other examples, they have chosen ...
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won't instead of using' wouldn't' is possible?
I have asked many questions about "would" both in ELL and ELU. But I still have a question about the use of "would". I have recently asked a question which @Jay also answered.
He used "wouldn't" in ...
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Can you contract WILL with nouns in informal writing / speaking?
I'm considering writing the following in an email to a friend.
I'm sure the exam'll be easy.
But it just sounds wrong to me, even in an informal setting....
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Used to vs would structural difference
I have a doubt on the following question.
1) I ______________ want to be a practising doctor but now I'm more interested in research.
Options:
A. was used to
B. used to
c. would
I was ...
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"WOULD" in the same clause as "IF"
I heard this sentence and I thought if it was possible that 'would" could be in the same clause as 'if', I mean I've read that it's possible if 'would' conveys "willingness?" But in ...
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What is the difference between 'I will do it' vs 'Let me do it'?
I feel the following sentences sound similar meaning but still, we use them differently at a different situation. What is the reason for this?
Let me show you around the city vs I will show you ...
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I would deny that report.(intention vs imaginary condition?)
There is a sentence, "I would deny that report".
and here is another sentence and explanation.
ex)
I would attend the party.
Means I'm not going to the party, unless something else is ...
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Should I use "will" or "would" in "election that would/will take place in 2018"?
After having drunk seven beers, he announced his candidature in the presidential election that would/will take place in 2018.
I am not sure whether to use "will" or "would". The main clause is in the ...
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What would you do if it _____on your wedding day. Rains or rained
I am really confused about this sentence. I just hope I would be helped over here.
I discussed this question with one of my friends who is also an English teacher.
What would you do if it _______on ...
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"Would you be kind enough to answer me?" Or: "Could you kindly answer me?"
Do these two sentences have the same meaning? Which of these phrases sounds more natural?
Would you be kind enough to answer me?
Or:
Could you kindly answer me?
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Why use "would" in this sentence?
I'm a little confused by "would" in this sentence. Speaker A is asking a question, the B's response uses "would". In this sentence, is "would" a past form of "will?&...
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Why 'would' in this example? [duplicate]
In the Marvin Gaye song "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" the refrain is:
Ooo I heard it through the grapevine
Not much longer would you be mine
Ooo I heard it through the grapevine
And I'...
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Questions with would
I'm practicing the use of would and I have a problem with one exercise, I have to put these words in order: would, be, the problem, what and a question mark (?).
And now I don't know how to put them.
...
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