Past modals: should have, could have, needn't have

Правило

Модальне + have + 3-тя форма оцінює минуле. Should have — слід було (критика, жаль): You should have told me. Could have — могли, але не скористалися: We could have taken a taxi. Needn't have — зробили, а потреби не було: I needn't have bought so much food. Didn't need to — потреби не було, невідомо, чи зробили.

Приклади

• You should have called me.Тобі слід було мені зателефонувати.
• She could have won the race, but she tripped.Вона могла виграти забіг, але спіткнулась.
• We needn't have rushed — the train was late.Нам не треба було поспішати: потяг запізнився.
• I shouldn't have eaten the cake.Мені не слід було їсти торт.