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Problem Verbs: Can/Could and Will/Would

For each of the following sentences, identify the correct past tense verb form of can or will that should fill in the blank.

For help with this exercise, see section 14d of Focus on Reading and Writing.

  1. Question

    What ______ it take for you to live on another planet?

    		A.
    		B.
    		C.
    		D.

  2. Question

    Until the middle of the twentieth century, humans _______ not even imagine space travel.

    		A.
    		B.
    		C.
    		D.

  3. Question

    Films that were made in the early 1900s _____ depict our moon as a large ball of cheese with a smiling face on it.

    		A.
    		B.
    		C.
    		D.

  4. Question

    When the Soviets launched the world’s first man-made satellite in 1957, the United States realized that it _______ be at a disadvantage if it didn’t take action.

    		A.
    		B.
    		C.
    		D.

  5. Question

    With the creation of NASA in 1958, the United States was determined that it ______ become the world leader in space exploration.

    		A.
    		B.
    		C.
    		D.

For each of the following sentences, identify the correct verb form of can or will that should fill in the blank.

For help with this exercise, see section 14d of Focus on Reading and Writing.

  1. Question

    In 1994, Kenzaburo Oe of Japan traveled to Stockholm, where he ______ accept the Nobel Prize in Literature.

    		A.
    		B.
    		C.
    		D.

  2. Question

    During his acceptance speech, he announced that he ________ no longer write literature.

    		A.
    		B.
    		C.
    		D.

  3. Question

    As it turns out, Kenzaburo Oe ________ not stop writing literature.

    		A.
    		B.
    		C.
    		D.

  4. Question

    Although his handicapped son, Hikari, is unable to talk, he ________ speak for himself through his music.

    		A.
    		B.
    		C.
    		D.

  5. Question

    In ten months, Hikari _______ speak to an audience by playing music.

    		A.
    		B.
    		C.
    		D.