Learn · Sentences Elliptical Sentences

We could have avoided the delay, but we didn’t take the right steps.

C2

Sentence

Narrator

We could have avoided the delay, but we didn’t take the right steps.

Study notes

How to use in different contexts

Giving Advice

You could have avoided the delay if you had taken the right steps.

Describing Habits

We often miss deadlines because we don't take the necessary steps.

Asking About Others

Could you have avoided the problem by taking a different approach?

Sharing Hypotheticals

If we had taken the right steps, the project would have been completed on time.

Rephrased versions

Formal

The delay could have been prevented had appropriate measures been taken.

Casual

We could have dodged the delay, but we messed up.

Simpler English

We could have stopped the delay, but we didn't do the right things.

Phrases to learn

avoided the delay

To prevent or escape a postponement or lateness.

take the right steps

To perform the necessary actions to achieve a goal.