Example sentences of "must have been a [adj] " in BNC.
Next page| No | Sentence |
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| 1 | Aesop must have been a keen observer of natural animal rhythms . |
| 2 | He must have been a strong contender for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar but then again , the history of the academy awards is littered with the words ‘ if only … ’ |
| 3 | Little is known of the inhabitants of the old manor house with its interesting architecture in the centre of the village , but the oddly named Hanging Grimston is within the parish , and here the Bouchier family lived in what must have been a grand castle with cottages nearby , and owned much land . |
| 4 | ‘ It must have been a terrible shock . |
| 5 | It must have been a terrible ordeal . |
| 6 | It must have been a terrible experience to see the meal vanish before their eyes — one that Dad never forgot . |
| 7 | Quite often operations could be cancelled at the last moment owing to worsening weather conditions , and this must have been a terrible let-down for them , after getting themselves keyed-up for yet another hectic night . |
| 8 | ‘ It must have been a terrible shock for you … ’ |
| 9 | ‘ It must have been a terrible experience , at her age . |
| 10 | ‘ Finding your friend 's body must have been a terrible shock for you , ’ he said . |
| 11 | ‘ It must have been a terrible shock , when she left , I mean . ’ |
| 12 | Hawkshead must have been a fascinating crowded place on market days . |
| 13 | That must have been a one off . |
| 14 | It must have been a savage attack ; Boswell had offended Johnson 's pride and held him up to ridicule ; now Johnson retaliated with such force that Boswell says , ‘ though I can bear such attacks as well as most men , I yet found myself so much the sport of all the company , that I would gladly expunge from my mind every trace of this severe retort . ’ |
| 15 | Although the royalists later alleged that the rebels had that morning received ‘ a double portion of oatmeal and whisky for incouragement ’ and that a ‘ graite many … that we took prisoners were drunk ’ , these must have been a fortunate minority , but everyone agrees that the prospect of action had had a reviving effect on even the hungriest and weariest . |
| 16 | Since living Nautilus does not have an ink sac , this must have been a protective device evolved at a later stage in cephalopod evolution . |
| 17 | Prior to this time it had to travel in cask and the resultant ‘ sparkling ’ wine must have been a sorry product , hardly an advertisement for its quality and reputation . |
| 18 | It has been plausibly argued that the cutting of the folds ( which is very shallow ) was done during a retouching of the colour ( something which must have been a regular operation ; on colour see below , p. 28 ) . |
| 19 | Well , the latter must have been a useful accomplishment in MI6 , likewise , fleetness of foot — he won a school race in 1950 . |
| 20 | Similarly Fawn Hall , asked by North to alter memoranda to conceal his work for the contras , remembered feeling uneasy : ‘ but I believe in Colonel North , and I know that there must have been a good reason why he was asking me to do this , and I — I did as I was told . ’ |
| 21 | He must have been a good bit older than her . |
| 22 | There must have been a good reason for the same method was also in use at other coach works . |
| 23 | In its heyday it must have been a good little vehicle , but now it was definitely finished . |
| 24 | ‘ Better get moving , ’ he thought He stopped as he turned Had he imagined it , no , he was sure something had flashed in the moonlight It must have been a good quarter of a mile away , towards the middle of the estuary . |
| 25 | Both dorsals must have been a good twelve inches clear of the water . |
| 26 | Gough Square was no backwater — Dr. Samuel Johnson had lived there a few years before — and a Gough Square lady must have been a good catch for an impecunious cheesemonger 's son . |
| 27 | It was certainly the case that in the first centuries the example of Jesus must have been a tremendous model for living and for dying . |
| 28 | In the same period , Arthur Young , subsidized by the big landlords to promote agricultural improvement , put his finger on what must have been a general attitude , when he described cattle-stealers in the Lincolnshire fens : ‘ So wild a country nurses up a race of people as wild as the fen , and thus the morals and eternal welfare of numbers are hazarded and ruined for want of an inclosure . ’ |
| 29 | It must have been a strange sight in a land of Celtic war chiefs , dressed in Highland-type garb , to see the proud , aristocratic De Cuellar in fine Spanish attire , pulling a face as he sipped the O'Rourke potheen and thought of his native wine . |
| 30 | All three spoke as though the moment were of no real consequence , but I know that for Mother and for O at least it must have been a strange and moving moment . |