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ESL forum >
Grammar and Linguistics > Choose
Choose
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normandey
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Choose
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If he ------------- longer legs, he would have won yesterday �s race.
A) had B) had had
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10 May 2018
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cunliffe
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I think it is A). To clarify, if it was a one-off action, it would be B ), as in, �if he had run faster, he would have won. � �If he had had a better pair of running shoes...�
However, having legs is ongoing, if I may put it like that! If he had longer legs A), is therefore a good answer, as long as you are referring to someone still alive!
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11 May 2018
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Engteachar
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Option B. Third conditional
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11 May 2018
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yanogator
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I agree with Lynne that A is the correct choice, for exactly that reason. If his legs were removable, then it would be a different story. (If only I had brought my longer legs with me!) Bruce |
11 May 2018
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fefa101
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If clause Type 3: If +PAST PERFECT+WOULD +PERFECT INFINITIVE == UNREAL ACTION THE PAST so the answer is had had |
11 May 2018
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Gi2gi
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I agree with Bruce and Lynne and disagree with fefa101 and Engteacher. � As for the type of the conditional sentence used, it is not� a "pure" 3rd conditional but rather a mixed one, the condition is type 2 and the result is type 3. You often encounter mixed conditionals like this. � E.g. � If I wasn �t allergic to animal fur (IN GENERAL), I would have touched the horse (YESTERDAY, SOME TIME IN THE PAST). If we didn �t trust him (IN GENERAL) we would not have invited him (IN THE PAST). |
13 May 2018
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Canankiran
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Of course it is B. It is unreal, 3rd condition. If he had had longer legs, but he doesn �t have longer legs, and never will have. |
14 May 2018
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Gi2gi
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That reminds me of a lass I knew. Oh, pretty she was! The only flaw with her was her obsession with growing fingernails. She would grow them so long that she could easily touch her toes without bending down. She took great pride in them, though. And when the Ministry of Crackpots organized a competition for the people with long nails, she jumped at the chance. But misfortune soon befell her. Just as she was accepting the first prize from the Head of Jury, and giving him a hug, quite accidentally she slit his carotid artery and the poor guy bled to death. Now serving her sentence for manslaughter you can often hear her saying: If I had brains, I would not have grown my fingernails (Mixed type conditional-present condition, past result) If I had not taken part in that contest, the poor man would be alive (another type of mixed conditional, but with past condition and present result) If I had not had unhappy childhood, I would not have become obsessed with growing my fingernails. ( �Pure � 3rd conditional) If I were not in jail, I would go clubbing every day. (2nd conditional) If they release me soon, I will marry the very first man I meet in the street. (1st conditional) If you are silly enough to have similar obsessions, you always suffer consequences (Zero conditional):D :/ :/
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15 May 2018
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yanogator
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Canankiran, as you say "he doesn �t have longer legs, and never will have". That is the reason the answer is A. "Had had" implies a condition that existed only at that time, or was important/of interest only at that time. His legs remain important today and into the future. Bruce |
16 May 2018
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Friends, I didn �t marry him. If I had longer legs, I would have used them to get away from him sooner, anyway. 
