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Why does speaker B add "would" in his response? Here is a dialogue.

A: Is it correct to say, "It would be appreciate if you can do something"?

B: For me, it would have to be, "I would appreciate it if you could do something".

gotube
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Mbutt
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    Do any of these answer your question: https://ell.stackexchange.com/questions/343263/will-or-would-when-making-a-predictiction, https://ell.stackexchange.com/questions/343478/what-is-the-use-of-would-in-this-context, https://ell.stackexchange.com/questions/343243/whats-the-meaning-of-would-in-this-sentence ??? – gotube Nov 07 '23 at 05:27
  • It would be appreciated* if...* OR I would appreciate* it if...* The first (passive) version uses the Past Participle. – FumbleFingers Nov 07 '23 at 12:22

1 Answers1

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There is an unspoken clause here. I've added it for clarity.

A: Is it correct to say "X"?
B: For me, if I were to say it, it would have to be "Y".

The "would" is referring to the conditional future in which the speaker B is using the phrase you asked about.

Christian Legge
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  • @Christion Legge. There is no conditional in that sentence. The speaker only uses "would" directly. Why use the past of "would" instead of "will"? The question isn't in the past. – Mbutt Nov 07 '23 at 07:06
  • The conditional is implied - unspoken, as Christian says. – Kate Bunting Nov 07 '23 at 08:38
  • @KateBunting Well, could you explain what the difference between the following is? I will appreciate it if you can help me with my homework. I would appreciate it if you could help me with my homework. – Mbutt Nov 07 '23 at 08:53
  • "I will appreciate it" means "I will be glad of it at some time in the future", and it is not a natural thing for an English speaker to say. We use the conditional to be polite, by not taking it for granted that the other person will help. The use of would as in your original example was recently discussed here. – Kate Bunting Nov 07 '23 at 09:00
  • @KateBunting I'm still unclear. Both are conditional. When I would like to say to someone. What should I choose "I will appreciate it if..." or "I would appreciate it if...?" Where does the difference lie? – Mbutt Nov 07 '23 at 09:19
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    As I said, "I will appreciate it" is not idiomatic English, "I would appreciate it" is. – Kate Bunting Nov 07 '23 at 09:55
  • @KateBunting So the speaker is considering what would happen if the other person helped them with their homework. That's why "would " works. Using "will" is going to happen, doesn't it? – Mbutt Nov 07 '23 at 10:20
  • Have you read the links to similar questions provided by gotube? It's considered polite to treat the other person's willingness to help as hypothetical rather than certain. – Kate Bunting Nov 07 '23 at 10:26
  • @Mbutt: The reason native speakers don't like I will* appreciate it [if you help me]* is because - as Kate says - it strongly implies you're sure the other person *will* help. Which could sound incredibly rude, since that format sometimes is used by people in power giving orders to underlings. Compare I will thank* you not to disturb me* (always an imperious, rude command) and I would ask* you not to disturb me* (usually a deferential, polite request). – FumbleFingers Nov 07 '23 at 12:31
  • @FumbleFingers I'm beginning to understand. But how can I know the other person will help. Could you illustrate how the scenario is? – Mbutt Nov 07 '23 at 15:17
  • That's not the point! You can't "know the other person will help", and it's generally considered rude / presumptuous / disrespectful to use words implying that they definitely will help. All you need to know is that for generations, native Anglophones have been using circumlocution and "indirect, hesitant, speculative, conditional" phrasing to make deferential, polite requests. So the preferred format when making a polite request is to refer to what *would* happen IF (their choice) the other person helps, not what *will* happen WHEN (your prediction / expectation) they help. – FumbleFingers Nov 07 '23 at 17:05