Pluperfect Progressive - Dependent Clauses

Dependent Clauses

Apart from the special cases referred to in the sections above, many other dependent clauses use a tense that might not logically be expected – in particular the present tense is used when the reference is to future time, and the past tense is used when the reference is to a hypothetical situation (in other words, the form with will is replaced by the present tense, and the form with would by the past tense). This occurs in condition clauses (as mentioned above), in clauses of time and place, and in many relative clauses:

If he finds your sweets, he will eat them.

We will report as soon as we receive any information.

The bomb will explode where it lands.

Go up to the first person that you see.

In the above examples, the simple present is used instead of the simple future, even though the reference is to future time. Examples of similar uses with other tense–aspect combinations are given below:

We will wash up while you are tidying. (present progressive instead of future progressive)

Please log off when you have finished working. (present perfect instead of future perfect)

If we were that hungry, we would go into the first restaurant that we saw. (simple past instead of simple conditional)

We would be searching the building while you were searching the grounds. (past progressive instead of conditional progressive)

In that case the dogs would find the scent that you had left. (past perfect instead of conditional perfect)

This does not apply to all dependent clauses, however; if the future time or hypothetical reference is expressed in the dependent clause independently of the main clause, then a form with will or would in a dependent clause is possible:

This is the man who will guide you through the mountains.

We entered a building where cowards would fear to tread.