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原书主词条 · 3 个连续词条

past future tense

原书 PDF 第 1146 页

past future tense1

问

The minister expected that the situation ____ in the following year.

A. will improve B. would improve C. improved D. had improved(全国成人高考,92-44) 答案为 B。但是, would improve 是什么意思呢?

答

上句中的 would improve 叫做过去将来时(它由 would 或 should + 动词原形构成)。大家知道,一般将来时表示以现在为时间参照点的将来的动作或状态。过去将来时则表示以过去的某个时间为参照点的将来的动作或状态。拿上面的试题来说,(The minister) expected 便是过去时间的参照点,would improve 是发生在它之后的动作(即从 expected 的时间角度看,improve 是将来要发生的事情)。类例:

  1. We never imagined that John would become a doctor。我们从未想到约翰会成为一名医生。(become 对 imagined 的时间而言,是将来的事儿)

  2. He said he would come tomorrow. 他说他明天来。(said 的时间为过去时间的参照点)

  3. I knew you would agree. 我知道你会同意的。

  4. He knew this would make the king very angry. 他知道这会使国王很生气的。请做下面的英语试题：

  5. We were all surprised when he made it clear that he ____ office soon. A. leaves B. would leave C. left D. had left(全国高考,93-18)

  6. The president told me that I was given three days to decide whether I ____ the offer. A. will accept B. would accept C. have accepted D. had accepted(全国成人高考,96-27)

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past future tense2

问

Those first words were to change my world.

上句中的 were to change 是一般过去时吗?

答

上句中的 were to change 具有纯过去将来时的意义, 见 was/were to do。

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past future tense3

问

除了 would + 动词原形表示过去将来时之外,还有哪些手段能表示过去将来时呢?它们之间有没有区别?

答

除了 would + 动词原形表示过去将来时之外, 还可以使用下列结构:

A. was/were to(见 was/were to do, be to 1^{1} ):

Those first words were to change my world. 我最先说出的这些单词后来改变了我的生活天地。

B. 过去进行时(表示过去将来的安排)(参见 come 11^{11} , past continuous tense 6^{6} ):

They were getting married the following spring. 他们订于下一年春天结婚。

C. was/were about(见 about 4^{4} ):

We were about to start when the telephone rang. 我们正要动身,突然电话铃响了。

应当注意,虽然上面讲到的四种结构都能表示过去将来的动作,但 would 和 was/were to 总是表示动作的实现:

  1. He would die in the quadrangle one winter night. 他后来在一个冬天的夜里死在四方院子里了。

  2. We had already reached 9,000 feet. Soon we would reach the top. 我们已经到达9,000英尺。不久我们就到达了山顶。

  3. This plan, however, was to be altered later. 但是,后来这个计划作了更改。

  4. Einstein was still a young man. His discoveries had not yet been published, but they were to change our whole view of the universe. (LEG) 爱因斯坦当时还是个年轻人，他的发现还没有公之于世，但这些发现后来却改变了我们的整个宇宙观。

但是，用在间接引语中的 would + 动词原形不一定表示动作的实现：

  1. He told us he would resign. 他告诉我们他将辞职。

past participle

  1. Bill told me that he wouldn't live with Tom again next year. 比尔告诉我他下一年不和汤姆住在一起了。

当 was/were to 后接完成时不定式时, 不表示动作的实现, 而表示动作的未实现(见 be to 7^{7} ):

  1. She was to have done it but she forgot. 她打算做这件事，但她忘了。

  2. He was to have arrived yesterday. 他本应昨天到达。

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