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交際英語(yǔ)中常用“過(guò)去時(shí)”表示“現(xiàn)在”
■山東 劉永科
在交際用語(yǔ)中，說(shuō)話人為了表示禮貌或客氣，常用過(guò)去時(shí)態(tài)來(lái)表達(dá)現(xiàn)在的情況。例如：
Would you please do me a favor?
Would you mind if I opened the door?
I’d appreciate it if you could be quiet.
Wouldn’t it be great if you explained the reason to us?
有些動(dòng)詞包括情態(tài)動(dòng)詞，其過(guò)去時(shí)態(tài)表示現(xiàn)在的情況，屬于一種委婉表達(dá)。除了would之外，could和might也同樣可以用來(lái)表達(dá)現(xiàn)在的婉轉(zhuǎn)請(qǐng)求、建議、疑問(wèn)或看法。例如：
Could you tell me the way to the station? 請(qǐng)告訴我去車站的路好嗎？
Could I speak to you in private a moment, John? 約翰，我可以單獨(dú)跟你說(shuō)一會(huì)兒話嗎
Oh, how could you be so stupid? 哎呀，你怎么這么蠢啊！
It's boring to walk all alone. Couldn't you go for walks with your friends? 一個(gè)人走路很沒(méi)意思。你可以和朋友們一起去散步呀？
Might I ask what you're doing here? 我可不可以問(wèn)一下，您在這里干什么？
You might as well bring me a chocolate next time.你下次最好給我?guī)K巧克力來(lái)。
I might well regret it later. 我很可能以后會(huì)對(duì)此后悔的。
The paper says that it might rain tomorrow. 報(bào)上說(shuō)明天可能下雨。
I have got a lot of books that might interest you. 我有許多書(shū)，也許你感興趣呢。
The drivers, as you might imagine, didn't care much for that. 和想象中的一樣，這些司機(jī)對(duì)此并不太在意。
【比較】
Could I use your telephone? （意味著I'm not sure if you will allow me to use your phone.)
Might I use your telephone? （意味著If I don't break it, would you mind my using your phone?)
此外，一些表示“想法，愿望”的動(dòng)詞，如：wonder, hope, think, want等，它們的過(guò)去時(shí)態(tài)可以表示現(xiàn)在婉轉(zhuǎn)的想法或愿望。
I was wondering if you could lend me a hand. （是現(xiàn)在的委婉建議）
We hoped you would do us a favor now. （指現(xiàn)在婉轉(zhuǎn)的希望）
I thought you might like this flower.（指現(xiàn)在的情況，但不敢肯定。）
I wanted to ask you a question now.（擔(dān)心對(duì)方不給回答，屬于婉轉(zhuǎn)。）
Did you wish to see me at present? （屬現(xiàn)在的委婉請(qǐng)求。）
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