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would - thesaurus entry
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modal verb
  1. 1
    used for talking about what was going to happen in the past
    1. a.
      used for showing what someone expected, intended, promised etc when they were thinking or talking about the future

      *Synonyms or related words for this sense of would*

      Modal verbs: can, cannot, could, may, might, must, ought, shall, should, used to... more
    2. b.
      used for talking about something that was going to happen after a particular point in the past

      *Synonyms or related words for this sense of would*

      Modal verbs: can, cannot, could, may, might, must, ought, shall, should, used to... more
  3. 3
    used for saying or asking what someone thinks about a possible situation

    *Synonyms or related words for this sense of would*

    Modal verbs: can, cannot, could, may, might, must, ought, shall, should, used to... more
  4. 4
    used for saying what someone used to do in the past

    *Synonyms or related words for this sense of would*

    Modal verbs: can, cannot, could, may, might, must, ought, shall, should, used to... more
  6. 6
    used for politely asking someone to do something or to let you do something

    *Synonyms or related words for this sense of would*

    Modal verbs: can, cannot, could, may, might, must, ought, shall, should, used to... more
  7. 7
    spoken used when making a polite offer or invitation

    *Synonyms or related words for this sense of would*

    Modal verbs: can, cannot, could, may, might, must, ought, shall, should, used to... more
  8. 8
    to be willing
    1. a.
      used when you think someone is willing to do something

      *Synonyms or related words for this sense of would*

      Modal verbs: can, cannot, could, may, might, must, ought, shall, should, used to... more
    2. b.
      used for saying that someone refused to do something on a particular occasion

      *Synonyms or related words for this sense of would*

      Modal verbs: can, cannot, could, may, might, must, ought, shall, should, used to... more
    3. c.
      used for saying that someone was always willing to do something at a time in the past

      *Synonyms or related words for this sense of would*

      Modal verbs: can, cannot, could, may, might, must, ought, shall, should, used to... more
  9. 9
    used for politely saying what someone wants to do or wishes they could do

    *Synonyms or related words for this sense of would*

    Modal verbs: can, cannot, could, may, might, must, ought, shall, should, used to... more

phrases

These are synonyms and/or related words for would in the British English Thesaurus. View synonyms and/or related words for would in the American English Thesaurus.

Change your default dictionary and thesaurus to American English.

showmance

a romantic relationship between two members of the cast of a play, film or television series

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soapstone

a type of soft stone that is often carved to make decorations

Open Dictionary

human-readable

able to be read and understood by people

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