Osya Bender
Junior Member
- Joined
- May 7, 2013
- Member Type
- Other
- Native Language
- Russian
- Home Country
- Belarus
- Current Location
- Belarus
Oxford dictionarypuncture
■ [no obj.] sustain a puncture
the tyre had punctured and it would have to be replaced
1) I can't understand what "sustain a puncture" means. if I have a puncture (of a tyre), why do I sustain it ? ("strengthen or support physically or mentally")
2) This combination of the past perfect and would have in this sentence is obscure to me...
I understand this as: The tyre punctured at some time in the past. Would have to be means that it has to be replaced but has not been replaced yet - (something like the second conditional; the sentence implies: it would have to be replaced but something has prevented from doing it).
Do I understand correctly?
Thanks.