ENGLISH

JAMB 2022 - Question 23

English 2022 JAMB Past Questions - Question 23: If I had known that he was going .......him the book. 

For these questions, choose the op­tion that best completes the gap
If I had known that he was going .......him the book. 
A:
B:
C:
D:
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Correct Answer

D

Explanation

The sentence should read: If I had known that he was going, I would have given him the book. The sen­tence is a subjunctive statement, meaning that it is a statement used to expresses an action that did not hap­ pen in the past when it is expected to or had the chance to. It is a mere action which was possible in the past but was not factual, i.e., did not ac­tually occurred. Past tense verbs are used to express such statement in two forms: (i) If I had known that he was going I would have given him the book, (ii) If I knew that he was going I would give him the book. See other examples: if I had heard the news earlier, I would have stayed at home (ii) If I heard the news, I would stay at home. It can also be in the negative: (i) if I had heard the news earlier. I would not have stayed at home (ii) if I had not heard the news earlier, I would not have stayed at home (Hi) I had not heard the new earlier, I would not have stayed at home.