would
UK: wʊd | US: wʊd
Definition
aux.v. used as the past tense of "will" to express conditional or hypothetical situations
aux.v. used to express polite requests, offers, or preferences
aux.v. used to express habitual actions in the past
Structure
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Etymology
"Would" evolved from the Old English "wolde," the past tense of "willan" (to wish or desire). Over time, it shifted from expressing volition to marking hypotheticals, politeness, and past habits—a common grammaticalization path for modal verbs. Its modern usage retains traces of its original desire-related meaning in contexts like "I would like..."
Examples
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