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Tiempos verbales
Si hablamos de "have" estamos hablando de presente perfecto. En este caso have significa "haber" y el verbo lo
tenemos que usar en pasado participio.
Should have:
Deberia haber...
I Should have been a better son
(Debería haber sido un mejor hijo)
You shouldn´t have drunk beer
(No deberias haber bebido cerveza)
He should have taken english clases
(El debería haber tomado clases de inglés)
Might/may have:
Podrias haber...
You might have arrived earlier
(Podrías haber llegado más temprano)
I may have played the piano in the concert
(Yo podría haber tocado el piano en el concierto)
Could have:
Pude haber
I could have done my homework yesterday, but I was sleepy
(Pude haber hecho mi tarea ayer, pero tenía sueño)
Must have:
Debí haber
I must have told you I was not coming today
(Debí haberte dicho que no iba a venir hoy)
You must have told me you didn´t understand
(Debiste haberme dicho que no entendiste)
NO OLVIDES QUE TIENES QUE USAR LOS VERBOS EN PAST PARTICIPLE FORM, TE DEJO UNA LISTA DE LOS MAS
COMUNES. TEN CUIDADO, AUNQUE ALGUNOS SON IGUALES QUE EL PAST FORM, NO LO SON TODOS.
In the sentence you gave, the meaning is the rough equivalent of "Maybe I will read a book." Two
common words for "maybe" are talvez (often spelled tal vez) and quizás (often spelled and/or pronounced
quizá). When speaking of a future event, these words are typically followed by a verb in the present tense
of the subjunctive mood. So the sentence can be readily translated in this way: Tal vez (yo) lea un libro or
quizás (yo) lea un libro. (The yo is optional, depending on whether the context makes clear you are
talking about yourself.)
"Maybe" here can also be translated by the phrase puede ser que, which literally means "it can be that."
Again, this phrase is followed by a verb in the subjunctive mood: Puede ser que (yo) lea un libro.
At least two other words meaning "maybe" are also sometimes used in the same way: posiblemente and
acaso. The informal phrase a lo mejor also can mean "maybe" or "perhaps"; it is typically followed by a
verb in the indicative (not subjunctive) mood: A lo mejor leeré un libro.
In other types of sentences where you're translating the English auxiliary verb "might," the meaning of
the sentence is the determining factor. Following are some examples; note that the translations given are
not the only possibilities:
She might have read it. Es posible que lo leyera. (Literally, it is possible that she read it.)
She might have got lost. Es posible que se haya perdido.
It might be true. Tal vez sea verdad.
He asked if he might eat. Pidió permiso para comer. (Literally, he asked for permission to eat.)
I might have guessed. Podría haberlo sospechado. (Literally, I could have suspected it.)
You might take a sleeping pill. Podrías tomar una pastilla de dormir. (Literally, you could take a
sleeping pill.)
I might as well study. Me convendría estudiar. (Literally, it would suit me to study.)