Results 1 to 3 of 3
Like Tree1Likes
  • 1 Post By philo2009

Thread: ought to + the subjanctive mood

  1. #1
    ostap77 is offline Key Member
    • Member Info
      • Member Type:
      • Student or Learner
      • Native Language:
      • Ukrainian
      • Home Country:
      • Ukraine
      • Current Location:
      • Ukraine
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Posts
    3,030

    Default ought to + the subjanctive mood

    "It was necessary that they should inform us of the dicision."

    Is it it possible to change "ought to" to "should" in a subjunctive mood construction?

    "It was necessary that they ought to infor us of the decision."

  2. #2
    philo2009 is offline Senior Member
    • Member Info
      • Member Type:
      • Academic
      • Native Language:
      • British English
      • Home Country:
      • UK
      • Current Location:
      • Japan
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Posts
    1,227
    Teacher

    Default Re: ought to + the subjanctive mood

    No. This kind of 'should' is a hypothetical, and not a genuinely deontic modal, usage that is, in any case, almost entirely confined to BrE. (In AmE, and for some BrE speakers, a plain present subjunctive would be considered sufficient to convey all the desired meaning.)
    ostap77 likes this.

  3. #3
    ostap77 is offline Key Member
    • Member Info
      • Member Type:
      • Student or Learner
      • Native Language:
      • Ukrainian
      • Home Country:
      • Ukraine
      • Current Location:
      • Ukraine
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Posts
    3,030
    Threadstarter / Original Poster

    Default Re: ought to + the subjanctive mood

    Quote Originally Posted by philo2009 View Post
    No. This kind of 'should' is a hypothetical, and not a genuinely deontic modal, usage that is, in any case, almost entirely confined to BrE. (In AmE, and for some BrE speakers, a plain present subjunctive would be considered sufficient to convey all the desired meaning.)
    Could there be the subjunctive mood after the verb "It's natural that she give an answer in time."?

Similar Threads

  1. mood,''This is what'' ,
    By twilit1988 in forum Ask a Teacher
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 20-Jan-2009, 13:54
  2. Mood
    By guzhao67 in forum Ask a Teacher
    Replies: 5
    Last Post: 07-Nov-2008, 18:00
  3. in or in the mood?
    By loveydovey in forum Ask a Teacher
    Replies: 2
    Last Post: 20-Mar-2008, 07:55
  4. mood
    By loveydovey in forum Ask a Teacher
    Replies: 1
    Last Post: 26-Aug-2007, 03:37
  5. mood
    By Jesse Huang in forum Ask a Teacher
    Replies: 6
    Last Post: 12-Feb-2004, 23:35

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •  

Search Engine Optimization by vBSEO 3.6.0