What tense is could have?
past tense
Could I have been sentence examples?
Examples: I could have been there on time if I had left home earlier. (= It was possible for me to be there on time, but it didn’t happen.) They could have been married if he hadn’t cheated on her.
Can I use could for future?
We often use could to express possibility in the present and the future.
Would is past or future?
Would is a past-tense form of will. If you are writing about past events, you can use it to indicate something that was in the future at that point in time, but is not necessarily in the future right now. In other words, you use would to preserve the future aspect when talking about the past.
Is could Past or Future?
The use of ‘could’, ‘would’, or ‘will be’ all imply future tense. The past tense version would be: “You could not have made me happy, and I am convinced that I am the last woman in the world who could have made you so.”
Where is could used?
Could: “Could” is used to express possibility. Something that could happen is not necessarily something that must happen. Could does not express desire or opinion. It is simply used to state one or more things that are possible (even if they are unlikely) or were possible in the past (even if they didn’t happen).
What is the difference could and could?
But I would suppose that “would” is more polite, because it expresses the idea of probability, and of willingness, and of the desire that something be done, whereas “could” is more in the realm of ability (yes I can). And according to the American Heritage Dictionary, “would” is used to make a polite request.
Can past ability examples?
We usually use could or couldn’t to talk about general abilities in the past. She could paint before she started school. I couldn’t cook until I went to university. When I lived next to the pool, I could go swimming every day.
Can past ability?
“Could” is a modal verb used to express possibility or past ability as well as to make suggestions and requests. “Could” is also commonly used in conditional sentences as the conditional form of “can.” past ability. You could see a movie or go out to dinner.
Can and could be a general ability?
Can and to be able to are usually used in the same way without a difference in meaning, but not always… ‘Can’ is a modal auxiliary verb that expresses general ability in the present tense; ‘could’ works the same way, but in the past tense. ‘To be able to’ is not a modal auxiliary verb.
Can you express ability?
We use the modal verbs can, could and be able to + verb infinitive to talk about ability. We use can when we speak about general ability in the present. We use could when we speak about general ability in the past.
Can as a possibility?
“Can” is one of the most commonly used modal verbs in English. It can be used to express ability or opportunity, to request or offer permission, and to show possibility or impossibility.
What are ability examples?
Ability means a special talent or skill. An example of ability is a batting average of . 500 in baseball. A skill, talent, or capacity.
Can could tenses?
Can is called a modal verb. It doesn’t have all of the tenses that verbs usually have. It has the simple past tense could, but no past participle. When a past participle is needed, the expression be able to is used instead.
Can or could you please?
If taken literally, “Can you” is equivalent to asking the person if they’re capable of doing something. “Could you”, on the other hand, implies that the action can be completed under some circumstances by the person. The usage of can you is idiomatic, and hence, is more popular used phrase of the two.