Example sentences of "could have [vb pp] a " in BNC.

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1 If only she could have waved a magic wand to turn the fat girl into a raving beauty .
2 Some moment when she , as a child , was on the verge of doing something wrong , and he could have fulfilled a father 's role and made her do it .
3 Nothing could have prepared a loyal , loving wife for such shocks .
4 Those huge hobnailed boots could have kicked a hole in Berkeley Castle .
5 She could have kicked a dog .
6 The difficulty here is best demonstrated when Honderich , analyzing the notion that Conservatism is a ‘ defence of the familiar ’ , argues that if this were central to Conservatism ‘ we should have a mystery on our hands , the mystery of how an egregious idiocy could have become a large political tradition ’ .
7 Had it continued , however , the rebel university could have become a rival establishment to both Oxford and Cambridge .
8 Had he been caught or had he panicked he could well have been in very serious trouble : the charming young tearaway could have become a court case .
9 Commitment to the war could have become a problem in itself as the chances of victory became remote .
10 It 's doubtful that the on-board DME was in error since there were two on board and the pilots could have suspected a malfunction were the readings substantially different .
11 Hope looked keenly at the man , held his gaze a moment — a glance which could have ruled a line straight from eye to eye — and then snapped to attention .
12 The amount involved could have funded a dozen or so investigations of the social implications of the reduced rail network , or it could have kept open one of Serpell 's threatened stations — Stratford-upon-Avon , for example — for a year .
13 Hatton could have done a nice little distracting job there .
14 I knew so many rotters before him , I could have done a degree in them .
15 She always said she could have done a better job running the place than the Director or his boss , Controller Establishment Research and Nuclear .
16 I was n't very happy with my legal representation ; in fact , I think I could have done a better job myself .
17 As Merrill looked at him questioningly , he went on , ‘ Knowing , by then , just how you felt about the circumstances of Elise 's death , you could have done a lot of damage . ’
18 Yep The Don was crap — I could have done a better job .
19 No-one can argue against or overstate what Sgt Wilko has done in this area , that 's why I believe no-one around could have done a better job , and why he is the best man for the future too .
20 that you could have done a bit more last year
21 I could have done a little the papers let them off of the hook for years !
22 Had the Home Office research shown that the majority of offences within reported crime were thought to be committed by people on probation , under SSD supervision , or on community programmes , one could have understood a post-trial response .
23 Oh I 'm alright do n't worry about me I 'm , they , the person at home , their family must be told as well as you making a note in your accident book that there has been somebody with a knock on the head however mi minor it is , it 's got to be reported , because that knock could have repercussions , it could have broken a small vessel in the brain , it could still be bleeding and that is when compression takes over .
24 I could have called a policeman .
25 ‘ But if Mellor had not disputed our bill we could have survived a few more months in the hope that we would sell several houses on our books . ’
26 You could have built a substantial career . ’
27 Mr Goldring said Bradley was transferred to a hospital in Nottingham where doctors found it difficult to understand how such a young child could have suffered a cardiac arrest .
28 Few voters could have obtained a real grasp of the issues at stake and hardly any would have been in a position to assess the leadership qualities of the candidates on offer .
29 They are the people who can refer clients on to solicitors and it is highly likely that the ‘ Advisory Liaison Service ’ and the proposed liaison officers could have played a significant part in making and fostering those contacts .
30 Badham ( 1981 ) has suggested that the basinal Lower Silurian shales to the west of the carbonate shelf facies could have formed a suitable depositional environment for mineralisation of the SEDEX style .
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