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ESL forum > Ask for help > Help me with grammar!    

Help me with grammar!



FrauSue
France

Your example of "should" is in the context of advice (present tense) rather than regret (past tense).
 
So how about: We were advised to take plenty of food to school / We had to take plenty of food to school / We were supposed to take plenty of food to school.
 
In my opinion, "had to" is the only option which effectively conveys that you definitely did take the food; the other two could suggest regret (in the same way as "should have taken").
 
Imagine a doctor telling his patient, "You really should stop smoking." The patient then talks about it to a friend and says, "I had to stop smoking on the doctor �s orders." 

21 Feb 2017     



cunliffe
United Kingdom

So, we �ve seen that �should � doesn �t work to get the meaning you want; it expresses something different. �Shoulded � might have worked if it had existed. 

22 Feb 2017     

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