All English 4U

English Grammar in Use · Murphy

Intermediate Grammar

Master English grammar one unit at a time. Clear notes, then 40+ interactive exercises with instant feedback — based on the topics in English Grammar in Use (Intermediate).

Continuous or simple?

Present perfect cont.

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UNIT 10

Perfect: cont. or simple?

Future: present tenses

Future: will / going to

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UNIT 24

Future cont. & perfect

UNIT 27 · Intermediate · B1–B2

Could (do) and could have (done)“could / could have done” — 44 interactive questions

Correct answers

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📖 Grammar Reference — Could (do) and could have (done)

Study the notes, then work through the six exercises.

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What you’ll learncould (do) for now/future · could have (done) for the past

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~15 minNotes + 6 exercises

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44 questionsInstant feedback

A could — a possible action (now or future)

We could go

Use could + the base verb to suggest a possible action now or in the future. It is like can, but a little less sure — one of several choices.

suggestion	A: What shall we do? B: We could watch a film.
future option	If you’re free, you could visit us at the weekend.
= can, less sure	We can meet today, or we could wait until Monday.

💡 After could use the base verb — never to: (not could to go).

B could — a present guess, or something unreal

We also use could (not can) to say something is possibly true now, or for an action that is not realistic (an exaggeration).

present guessThe phone’s ringing — it could be Tim. (not it can be)

not sure whenThey could arrive at any moment.

unrealI’m so tired, I could sleep for a week.

C could have (done) — possible in the past

I could have helped

could have + past participle = it was possible in the past. Often the thing didn’t actually happen (an opportunity you didn’t take).

opportunity not taken Why did you walk? You could have taken the bus.

past guess She didn’t reply — she could have been asleep.

lucky escape Be careful! You could have hurt yourself.

💡 Say could have, never could of. In speech they sound the same, but of is wrong in writing.

D couldn’t have (done) — it wasn’t possible

Use couldn’t have + past participle to say something wouldn’t have been possible, even if you had tried.

it was possible → could haveit wasn’t possible → couldn’t have

the best possible We had a great time — it couldn’t have been better.

not could ~~It can’t have been better~~ works for a guess, but here we mean couldn’t have been.

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Remember — could (do) = possible now/future or a suggestion · could (be) = a present guess · could have (done) = possible in the past (often didn’t happen) · couldn’t have (done) = it wasn’t possible. Write could have, never could of.

Made with care for English learners · allenglish4u.com
Original practice material inspired by the English Grammar in Use syllabus (Cambridge University Press). Example sentences and exercises are written by All English 4U.