should have, could have, needn’t have
modal + have + participio habla del pasado: lamentos, críticas, posibilidades perdidas y acciones innecesarias.
| significado | ejemplo | |
|---|---|---|
| should have | debería haberlo hecho y no lo hice | You should have told me. |
| shouldn’t have | no debería haberlo hecho y lo hice | I shouldn’t have eaten so much. |
| could have | era posible, pero no pasó | We could have won. |
| needn’t have | lo hice, pero no hacía falta | You needn’t have brought a gift. |
Ejemplos
- I should have booked earlier.Debería haber reservado antes.
- You could have called me!¡Podrías haberme llamado!
- We needn’t have hurried, the train was late.No hacía falta habernos dado prisa, el tren llegó tarde.
- He shouldn’t have said that.No debería haber dicho eso.
- She must have missed the bus.Seguro que ha perdido el autobús.
Errores comunes
- ✗ I should had gone there.✓ I should have gone there.El haber español se traduce con have y no con had, así que se dice should have gone.
- ✗ You could have call us!✓ You could have called us!Tras could have va el participio called y no la forma base.
- ✗ We needn’t have hurry.✓ We needn’t have hurried.Tras needn’t have va el participio hurried y no la forma base.
- ✗ She must have went.✓ She must have gone.Tras must have se usa el participio gone y no went, que es el pasado simple.
- ✗ He shouldn’t of said that.✓ He shouldn’t have said that.Of nace de la pronunciación shouldn’t’ve, pero por escrito la forma correcta es have.