-1

In one of its definitions of 'will', Cambridge Dictionary(Cambridge Dictionary | English Dictionary, Translations & Thesaurus) says:

will is used when referring to something that always or usually happens, and then it gives a good number of examples.

Now consider these two sentences, please:

a) Fruit will keep longer in the fridge.

b) Fruit keeps longer in the fridge.

My questions are:

1) What is the difference between a) and b)? Why 'will' in a)?

2) Can I put can and may in the place of will in a)?

3) I don't think we could replace will with could or might in a). Am I right?

Mr. X
  • 651

1 Answers1

2
  • (1b) Fruit keeps longer in the fridge is a general statement of a universal (under normal circumstances) fact, a middlle voice usage. cf Ice melts at 273K.
  • (1a) Fruit will keep longer in the fridge may be used as a replacement for (1b) with precisely the same meaning, or as a mild incentive/corrective to someone leaving it out of the fridge.

...........

  • (2a/b) Fruit can/may keep longer in the fridge are both grammatical, but have different default meanings from (1), 'Sometimes, ...' or 'It's possible that ...', and are best avoided. Occasionally, one might hear the variant with 'can' used with the intended meaning of (1[a]). This isn't strictly wrong (modals are notoriously polysemous), and context would disambiguate.

...........

  • (3a/b) Fruit could/would keep longer in the fridge are again both grammatical, but again have different default senses from (1[a]). They involve correction, with perhaps sarcasm.
Edwin Ashworth
  • 83,272
  • Couldn't we use "Fruit could/might keep longer in the fridge" as meaning "in the past, Fruit sometimes kept longer in the fridge," although the sentence is not true and doesn't sound very good? In your last sentence(3a/b), does "could" mean "would be able to"? – Mr. X Mar 10 '20 at 20:41
  • You'd use 'Fruit kept longer (with the implication of in almost all cases) in the fridge', although 'Fruit could (now) keep longer in the fridge (than in pre-fridge days)' is certainly acceptable. The possibility sense doesn't make much sense. // The normal default sense would, I think, correspond to 'Put the fruit in the fridge[, dummy!]' – Edwin Ashworth Mar 11 '20 at 13:00
  • Sorry to bother you again. In (2a/b), do you mean "Fruit may keep longer...=sometimes fruit keep longer...," too? – Mr. X Mar 17 '20 at 19:25
  • 1
    'Fruit may keep longer in the fridge' defaults to (and would probably only be used to mean) 'It is possible that fruit put in the fridge will keep longer'. 'Fruit may be kept longer by putting it in the fridge' defaults to, essentially, 'It is wise to put fruit in the fridge if possible: it keeps longer that way.' – Edwin Ashworth Mar 17 '20 at 19:35
  • Thank you. Your second sentence: Fruit may be kept...sounds like a suggestion. – Mr. X Mar 17 '20 at 20:05
  • 'It is wise to put fruit in the fridge if possible: it keeps longer that way.' Said to your son at uni, certainly an exhortation. Said to a group of young students, instruction. – Edwin Ashworth Mar 18 '20 at 10:45