Will vs. would

[deepti_]

English Language Proficiency Tests, Advanced Level

ESL/EFL Test #116 "Future Tenses", question 4

He was quite definite about it and assured me he ......... come.

(a) will
(b) shall
(c) should
(d) would

English Language Proficiency Tests, Advanced Level

ESL/EFL Test #116 "Future Tenses", answer 4

He was quite definite about it and assured me he would come.

Correct answer: (d) would

Your answer was: incorrect
He was quite definite about it and assured me he will come.
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hi,

when can I use would and will? Why can't I use will in this question?

Thanks
Deep

[Alan]

Hi,

This is an example of the sequence of tenses - one after the present and one after the past:

He assures me (Present) he will come

He assured (Past) he would come.

Alan
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Indirect Speech

[deep]

[Icemaster]

hello sir,

a new user here:

i am not sure, but i think i've read somewhere that:
will: is used when the speaker expresses certainty
would: is used when there are some uncertainties in the statement

so in the case of this the speaker "assured" the other person that he will come.

any thoughts on this one sir?

[Lost_Soul]

Hi

in the example above would is used because we cannot use will when we're talking about the future from the past.
Take a look at these:

[Alan]

Hi icemaster,

You are quite right when you say that 'will' has the sense of determination but it has to be in relation to what is said now. When you repeat what was said, you have to make the changes to the tenses and in that case it becomes: He assured me he would come. It doesn't make sense to refer to the past (he assured) and to the implied future (he will come) within the same time frame.

Alan
_________________
English as a Foreign Language
You can read my EFL story Phrasal Verbs/look

[Lost_Soul]

[Icemaster]

Thanks to both of you