Page 84 - English Grammar in Use

Unit
36 would

A We use would (’d) / wouldn’t when we imagine a situation or action (= we think of something that is
not real):
It would be nice to buy a new car, but we can’t afford it.

I’d love to live by the sea.
a: Shall I tell Chris what happened?
b: No, I wouldn’t say anything.
(= I wouldn’t say anything in your situation)
We use would have (done) when we imagine something
that didn’t happen in the past:
They helped us a lot. I don’t know what we’d have done without their help.
(we’d have done = we would have done)
It’s a shame you didn’t see the film. You would have liked it.
I didn’t tell Sam what happened. He wouldn’t have been pleased.
Compare would (do) and would have (done):
I would call Lisa, but I don’t have her number. (now)
I would have called Lisa, but I didn’t have her number. (past)
I’m not going to invite them to the party. They wouldn’t come anyway.
I didn’t invite them to the party. They wouldn’t have come anyway.

We often use would in sentences with if (see Units 38–40):
I would call Lisa if I had her number.
I would have called Lisa if I’d had her number.

B Compare will (’ll) and would (’d):
I’ll stay a little longer. I’ve got plenty of time.
I’d stay a little longer, but I really have to go now. (so I can’t stay longer)
I’ll call Lisa. I have her number.
I’d call Lisa, but I don’t have her number. (so I can’t call her)
Sometimes would/wouldn’t is the past of will/won’t.
Compare:

present past
TOM: I’ll call you on Sunday. → Tom said he’d call me on Sunday.
aMY: I promise I won’t be late. → Amy promised that she wouldn’t be late.
LISa: Oh, no! The car won’t start. → Lisa was annoyed because her car wouldn’t start.
Somebody wouldn’t do something = he/she refused to do it:
I tried to warn him, but he wouldn’t listen to me. (= he refused to listen)
The car wouldn’t start. (= it ‘refused’ to start)

C You can also use would to talk about things that happened regularly in the past:
When we were children, we lived by the sea. In summer, if the weather was fine, we would
all get up early and go for a swim. (= we did this regularly)
Whenever Richard was angry, he would walk out of the room.
With this meaning, would is similar to used to (see Unit 18):
Whenever Richard was angry, he used to walk out of the room.

will ➜ Units 21–22 would … if ➜ Units 38–40 wish … would ➜ Unit 41 would like ➜ Units 37D, 58
72 would prefer / would rather ➜ Unit 59 Modal verbs ➜ Appendix 4