That.should' after I'm surprised', etc

That should can be used after phrases with adjectives and nouns expressing feelings and emotions: e.g. I'm annoyed, I'm surprised, It's funny, It's a pity.

I'm surprised that he should feel like that. If we wish to be more emphatic, we may use the simple present:

I'm surprised that he feels like that
Shouldn't is possible but often avoided (because of its ambiguity) in
such cases and the negative present or past are preferred:
present reference: I'm surprised that he doesn't feel any remorse
past reference: I'm surprised that he didn't feel any remorse

The past or should have can be used in: e.g.

/ was surprised that he made/should have made the same mistake

11.76 'There' + modal auxiliaries

Parallel structures to there is/there are, etc. [> 10.17] can be formed with modal auxiliaries in various combinations. Here are some examples:

11.76.1 'There' + modal + 'be'

There could be no doubt about it There won't be an election in June There must be a mistake

11.76.2 'There' + modal + 'have been' + complement

There can't have been any doubt about it.

There might have been a strike

There oughtn't to have been any difficulty about it.

11.76.3 'There' + modal + 'be' + complement + verb'-ing'

There can't be anyone waiting outside

There never used to be anyone living next door

There could be something blocking the pipe.

11.76.4 'There' + modal + 'have been' + complement + verb'-ing'

There might have been someone waiting outside There must have been something blocking the pipe There could have been someone crossing the road

11.76.5 'There' + modal: question forms

All the usual question forms are possible: e.g.

Yes/No questions: Could there have been any doubt?

Might there have been someone waiting
negative questions: Wouldn't there have been a strike?

Couldn't there have been an accident question-word questions: When might there be an answer?

Why couldn't there have been a

mistake⁹

12 The passive and the causative

The passive: general information about form

Active voice and passive voice

Active voice and passive voice refer to the form of a verb. In the active, the subject of the verb is the person or thing doing the action:

John cooked the food last night Other typical active verb forms: eats, made will take In the passive, the action is done to the subject:

The food was cooked last night Other typical passive verb forms: is eaten, was made, will be taken The passive occurs very commonly in English: it is not merely an alternative to the active, but has its own distinctive uses.