stingy old man

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Placez le pointeur de la souris sur les mots soulignés, sans cliquer

A stingy old man was determined to prove wrong the old saying, "You can't take it with you when you die." After much thought, he finally figured out how to take at least some of his money with him when he died.

He instructed his wife to go to the bank and withdraw enough money to fill two pillowcases. He then directed her to take the pillowcases full of money to the attic and leave them directly above his bed. His plan was to reach out and grab them on his way to heaven.

Several weeks after the funeral the deceased man’s wife, up in the attic cleaning, comes upon the two forgotten pillowcases stuffed with cash.

“Oh, that old fool,” she exclaims. “I knew he should have had me put the money in the basement.”

Notice the use of the third conditional: "he should have had me put…". This structure expresses regret or criticism of something that didn't happen in the past.

Structure: should + have + past participle

Examples:
  • I should have studied harder for the exam.
  • She shouldn't have said that to her boss.
  • He should have had me put the money in the basement.

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