The following sentence has been split into four segments. Identify the segment that contains a grammatical error.
If you have / remained calm / you could have / saved the situation.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: B
Explanation
The correct answer is Option 2 i.e. If you have.
- The given sentence is an example of third conditional sentence.
- Third conditional sentences are used to explain that present circumstances would be different if something different had happened in the past. We talk about a condition in the past that did not happen. That is why there is no possibility for this condition.
- Example: If she had studied, she would have passed the exam.
- These are all conditions that were likely, but regrettably did not happen.
- The following rules are being followed while writing a third conditional sentence:
- We use the past perfect i.e., had + past participle after If.
- Next, the modal auxiliary (would, could, should, etc.) + have + past participle in the second part of the sentence is used.
- Therefore, in the given sentence, the past tense form of the verb "had" should be used in place of the present tense form of the verb "have".
The correct sentence will be:-
If you had remained calm you could have saved the situation.
Hence, the correct answer is Option 2 i.e. If you have.