Is it correct to say “She could do this after the lesson ended” or “She could do this after the lesson ends”? Can "could" be used with the Present Simple?

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Correct: “She could do this after the lesson ends”

Unclear and unnatural, but "grammatically correct" : “She could do this after the lesson ended”

Answer

She could do this after the lesson ends. She could have done that after the lesson needed. Keep the tenses the same.

Answer

The second is correct but it is expressing possibility in the future, or a conditional idea. The meaning is that it would be possible for her to do this after the lessons ends (or has ended).

The first is not correct. 'The lesson ended' places the event in the past. You can say 'She could HAVE done this after the lesson ended'. This means that it was a possibility in the past (but she did not actually do it).

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