Of course, had we used the more normal if-clause to express this conditional idea, the contracted negative form would have been the norm: If only it hadn't rained last Saturday, we would've had a ...

Grammar lovers really rally behind this rule, and their reasoning is that in ... which means they are used at the start of an independent clause to connect it to a dependent clause.

Consequently, the Rules Clause has been interpreted by the Supreme Court to grant each House broad discretion in determining the rules of its own internal operations. In United States v.

As your example illustrates, when we are discussing such past situations we normally use past perfect in the if-clause, followed by would have + past participle in the main clause. Compare the ...