English term
we'd need our headlights on
D.I: Driving Instructor
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D.I: The first thing you do when you get behind the wheel is check the controls. Start with the headlights.
Man: Why? It isn't dark.
D.I: No, but if it were dark, we'd need our headlights on.
And they do work. Good. Then we check the windshield wipers.
Man: Why? It isn't raining.
D.I: No, but if it were raining, we'd need our windshield wipers on. And they do work fine.
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What does "we'd need our headlights on" mean?
1- Does it mean "we'd need TO TURN/SWITCH our headlights on"?
OR
2- Does it mean "our headlights SHOULD BE on"?
Thank you
Dec 6, 2021 09:56: writeaway changed "Field (write-in)" from "(none)" to "English comprehension"
Dec 6, 2021 11:31: Yvonne Gallagher changed "Level" from "PRO" to "Non-PRO"
Non-PRO (3): Barbara Carrara, Tony M, Yvonne Gallagher
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Responses
Both
Of course, in order for the headlights to be on, someone would have to turn them on, and this is what the driving instructor is saying the man should do if he is driving in the dark. So meaning 1 is also correct.
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Note added at 3 hrs (2021-12-06 09:29:34 GMT)
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You're welcome!
See here for the meaning of "need" : https://www.lexico.com/definition/need
Yes, you could reformulate the sentence to include "have to", which does have a similar meaning in this context.
E.g. "The headlights would have to be on" (meaning 2) or "We'd have to turn the headlights on" (meaning 1).
However, you couldn't use "must" as you can't use that in the conditional (would). "We would must" or "the headlights would must" doesn't make sense.
| Thank you so much, Ruth |
| I have one more question: |
| What does "need" mean in this sentence? |
| Does it mean "have to/must"? |
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