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ShirleyKL
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ShirleyKL
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If the cowboy had of been quicker to pull the trigger, the rattlesnake wouldn’t have bit his horse on the foot, causing the cowboy to fall off and roll down the hill.

a) had of been quicker to pull the trigger, the rattlesnake wouldn’t have bit
b) was a bit quicker to pull the trigger, the rattlesnake ought not have bitten
c) were pulling the trigger faster, the rattlesnake might not have bit
d) was quicker to pull the trigger, the rattlesnake wouldn’t have bit
e) had faster pulled the trigger, the rattlesnake shouldn’t have bitten

Source: Ultimate GMAT Grammar

I do not understand why "was" can be accepted in the OA. I thought that in unreal conditional sentence, "to be" is always "were"?

If the cowboy had of been quicker to pull the trigger, the rattlesnake wouldn’t have bit his horse on the foot, causing the cowboy to fall off and roll down the hill.

a) had of been quicker to pull the trigger, the rattlesnake wouldn’t have bit
b) was a bit quicker to pull the trigger, the rattlesnake ought not have bitten
c) were pulling the trigger faster, the rattlesnake might not have bit
d) was quicker to pull the trigger, the rattlesnake wouldn’t have bit
e) had faster pulled the trigger, the rattlesnake shouldn’t have bitten

IMO D

Hi Kinshook

C may wrong because of using past continuous tense. But why “was” in D is correct while D is unreal condition?

Posted from my mobile device

This Question is wrongly formed. It should had been "Were" in the question, given that this is subjunctive.
From all the wrong choices, Option D was the least wrong. This answer is like choosing from the lesser of evils :lol:
+1 Kudos if you found this helpful :blushing:
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