Touchstone 2nd Edition • Language summary • Level 3

Unit 8 • Lesson B: Life's little dilemmas

Vocabulary
Interacting with people
apologize for doing something (v)
ask someone for something (v)
borrow something from someone (v)
buy something for someone (v)
lend something to someone (v)
remind someone about something (v)
say something to someone (v)
share something with someone (v)
talk to someone about something (v)
thank someone for something (v)

Other words
forget (about) (v)
pay (for) (v)
react (v)
think (about) (v)
worry (about) (v)

Grammar
Asking about imaginary situations or events
Information questions and answers

You can ask information questions about imaginary situations or events like this:

What would you do if you broke a friend's camera?

(= You didn't break your friend's camera, but let's imagine you did. What would
you do?)

© Cambridge University Press 2014 Unit 8, Lesson B, Page 1

Touchstone 2nd Edition • Language summary • Level 3
The question has two clauses: a main clause with an information question and an if clause.
The if clause describes an imaginary situation or event.

The if clause can come after or before the main clause:

What would you do if you broke a friend's camera?

If you broke a friend's camera, what would you do?

When the if clause comes before the main clause, use a comma (,) after the if clause.

To answer information questions about imaginary situations use would / 'd or wouldn't:

A What would you do if you broke a friend's camera?

B I'd apologize for breaking it. / I wouldn't say anything about it.

Yes-No questions and answers

Use would + subject + verb to ask Yes-No questions about imaginary situations or events. Use
would or wouldn't to answer the questions:

A Would you pay for a new camera?

B Yes, I would. / No, I wouldn't.

© Cambridge University Press 2014 Unit 8, Lesson B, Page 2