Should have and needn't have: what went wrong? Exercises for regrets and things that weren't needed

This B2 drill lesson gives should have and needn't have exercises for looking back: mistakes, missed chances with could have, and things that weren't necessary.

Grammar: Should / shouldn't have + past participle with questions and short answers, could have for a chance not taken, needn't have, and didn't need to + verb.
Topic: Travel mistakes: an invented review of a camper van trip with its comments, the rental company's reply, Everett's tips and a chat with Yolanda.
Activities: Sorting by meaning, choices, gap-fills, question writing, tables, matching, word order, find-the-mistake quizzes, drag-and-drop texts, a memory game, an anagram, a chat and a test.

What's inside

Chapter 1The rule
- PictureUnlock
- Study the scheme: should have, could have, needn't haveGrammar schemeTry it
- Is the sentence correct? Mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
- Sort the sentences: did it happen or not?Sort into columnsTry it
- Choose the right formChoose the optionUnlock
- Write the past participleFill in the gapsUnlock
Chapter 2Oops! Should or shouldn't?
- Fill in the gaps: should have or shouldn't have + past participleFill in the gapsTry it
- Match the problems and the regretsMatchUnlock
- Fill in the table: positive, negative, questionFill in the tableUnlock
- Write the questions with should haveFill in the gapsUnlock
- Put the words in the right orderUnjumbleUnlock
- Find the mistake and choose the right wordsQuizUnlock
- Read Lorcan's message and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
Chapter 3Another way: could have
- Fill in the gaps with could have + past participleFill in the gapsUnlock
- Choose the right form: could haveChoose the optionTry it
- Match the beginnings and the endingsMatchUnlock
- Choose the right meaningQuizUnlock
- Read the clues and fill in the gaps: possible, a good idea or a mistake?Fill in the gapsUnlock
- Read Cosima's post and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
Chapter 4All for nothing: needn't have
- Match the sentences and the reasonsMatchTry it
- Choose the right form: needn't have and didn't need toChoose the optionUnlock
- Did it happen? Choose the right answerQuizUnlock
- Sort the sentences: a mistake or not necessary?Sort into columnsUnlock
- Read the clues and fill in the gaps: a mistake or not necessary?Fill in the gapsUnlock
- Fill in the gaps with didn't need to: did it happen?Fill in the gapsUnlock
- Read Niamh's message and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
Chapter 5Real life: Mistakes on the road
- Read the review and the commentsReal-life documentUnlock
- Read the review again: true or false?True or falseUnlock
- Read Aroha's email and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Read Everett's tips and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
- Read the company's tips and choose the right wordsChoose the optionUnlock
- Choose the right replies: Yolanda texts youChatTry it
- Test yourself: choose the right answerQuizUnlock
Chapter 6Homework
- Choose the right form: at workChoose the optionUnlock
- Fill in the gaps with should have or shouldn't have: at homeFill in the gapsUnlock
- Find the matching pairs: the problem and the regretMemory gameUnlock
- Match the situations and the reactionsMatchUnlock
- Fill in the table: three ways to look backFill in the tableUnlock
- Put the words in the right order: looking backUnjumbleUnlock
- Find the mistake and choose the right words: everyday EnglishQuizUnlock
- Is it correct English? Mark true or falseTrue or falseUnlock
- Sort the sentences: what do they mean?Sort into columnsUnlock
- Choose the right sentence for the situationQuizUnlock
- Read Esperanza's blog post and fill in the gapsFill in the gapsUnlock
- Read Ottavio's email and drag the words into the gapsDrag and dropUnlock
- Read the product review and choose the right wordsChoose the optionUnlock
- Unscramble the past participlesAnagramUnlock
- Write the questions: should, could or need?Fill in the gapsUnlock

Grammar: should have, could have and needn't have

To look back at the past and judge it, use a modal + have + past participle. Each modal tells you whether it happened: after should have it didn't, after shouldn't have and needn't have it did, and could have means it was possible but didn't happen.

Should have, could have, needn't have: looking back

Look back at the past: say what was a good idea, what was a mistake, what was possible and what wasn't necessary.

Modal + have + past participle

The pattern stays the same: We should have reserved a table. You needn't have cleaned my car! Questions put the modal first, Should we have gone?, and short answers keep the modal and have: Yes, we should have. It's could have, never can have.

modal + have + past participle

subjectshould / shouldn't · could · needn'thavepast participle

We should have reserved a table. (We didn't.)

I shouldn't have shouted at him. (I did.)

You needn't have cleaned my car! (You did.)

Positive, negative, question

Form	Positive (+)	Negative (−)	Question (?)
should have	We should have gone. · We should've gone.	We shouldn't have gone. · We should not have gone.	Should we have gone? Yes, we should have. / No, we shouldn't have.
could have	We could have flown. · We could've flown. (not: can have flown)	(couldn't have means something else: it was impossible)	Could we have flown?
needn't have	—	You needn't have paid. · You need not have paid.	—
didn't need to	We needed to wait.	We didn't need to wait. · We didn't have to wait.	Did we need to wait? Yes, we did. / No, we didn't.

Should have, shouldn't have or could have?

Should have is a good idea that didn't happen: You should have told me about the meeting! Shouldn't have is a mistake that did: He shouldn't have parked there. Could have is a chance not taken: She could have studied law, but she chose music.

should have: a good idea, but it didn't happen

regret or criticism
We missed the start of the movie. We should have taken a taxi.
You should have told me about the meeting!

shouldn't have: it happened, but it was a mistake

regret or criticism
He shouldn't have parked there. He got a ticket.
I shouldn't have lied to her. Now she doesn't trust me.

could have: it was possible, but it didn't happen

a chance someone didn't take
We could have eaten out, but we cooked at home.
She could have studied law, but she chose music.

Needn't have or didn't need to?

Needn't have says it happened but wasn't necessary: We needn't have run for the train. It is formal and more British; in the US, people usually say didn't need to, and the rest of the sentence shows what happened: …so we didn't or …but I did.

needn't have + past participle

It happened, but it wasn't necessary.
We needn't have run for the train: it was ten minutes late.
Formal and more British. In the US, people usually say didn't need to … but I did.

didn't need to / didn't have to + verb

It wasn't necessary. Did it happen? The rest of the sentence tells you.
…so it didn't happen: Parking was free, so we didn't need to pay.
…but it happened anyway: I didn't need to bring a coat, but I brought one.

Ought to have, and You shouldn't have!

Ought to have means should have but sounds more formal. You shouldn't have! is a warm thank-you for a gift, and You could have told me! shows you're annoyed. Should've sounds like "should of", which is always wrong.

Good to know

ought to have = should have, but more formal: We ought to have called. You shouldn't have! = a warm thank you for a gift. You could have told me! = I'm annoyed that you didn't. In speech, should have sounds like should've, so people sometimes write "should of" or "could of": that is always wrong.

Common mistakes

Watch for We should had booked earlier, You should of told me, I needn't to have worried and She shouldn't have went home: have comes straight after the modal, then the past participle.

We should had booked earlier.
We should have booked earlier.
should + have, never had
You should of told me.
You should have told me. · You should've told me.
should've sounds like "should of"
I needn't to have worried.
I needn't have worried.
needn't + have, no to
She shouldn't have went home.
She shouldn't have gone home.
have + past participle: gone, taken, eaten

Examples

I should have saved my work before the laptop crashed.I didn't save it. That was a mistake.
You shouldn't have lent him your car.You lent it. Bad idea!
Should I have called the police?a question
We could have flown, but we took the train and loved it.Flying was possible. We didn't fly.
I needn't have taken a sweater: it was hot all day.I took one. It wasn't necessary.
The trip was easy: we didn't need to change trains.Changing wasn't necessary, so we didn't.

More lessons on this grammar: Modal verbs lessons and exercises

Try the should have and needn't have exercises

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What's in the lesson

41 auto-checked exercises
4 games
1 real-life document
1 grammar scheme
1 picture

The main objectives of this lesson are to:

regret what didn't happen with should have: We got completely wet on our walk. We should have checked the weather.
call something a mistake with shouldn't have + past participle: He shouldn't have eaten the whole pizza, not shouldn't have ate
ask and answer about the past: Should I have told her the truth? – Yes, you should have.
talk about a chance nobody took with could have: We could have flown to Denver, but driving was much cheaper.
say something you did wasn't necessary: We needn't have hurried. The movie started twenty minutes late.

Grammar:: should have · shouldn't have · could have · needn't have · didn't need to · past modals
Topic:: grammar practice · travel mistakes · road trips · regrets

Teaching tips

Swap travel disasters: each student describes one trip that went wrong in three lines, and the group answers with one should have, one shouldn't have and one could have.
Ask "Did it happen?" before every gap: students say yes or no for the action first; shouldn't have and needn't have mean yes, should have and could have mean no.
Act out You shouldn't have!: hand a student a pretend gift and let them thank you with it, then pairs swap roles with other small favors, like carrying a bag.

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The whole course: English Grammar Practice · B2

English Grammar Practice · B2 has 24 drill lessons, one grammar point each: the future perfect and continuous, the third and mixed conditionals, wishes, past modals, the impersonal passive, have something done, participle clauses, reporting verbs and verb patterns. Each has the rule as a scheme, 43 to 47 exercises that check themselves, 15 of them for homework, and no new words.See the course

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