I suspect that the present in "that nobody walks off" is intended to match the present in "as they leave." I also think it's OK to do it the way the ESL student wants it. In other words, I think we DO say "that nobody will walk off with any silver." Had someone said that in ordinary conversation between two native speakers, you probably would not have noticed it. PS: Aren't we supposed to say, these days, that there is no future tense in English? >How does one explain the use of the present rather than the future tense >in the subrdinate clause of the following: > >"I will search the guests as they leave to make sure that nobody walks off >with any silver." > >An ESL student demands a clear explanation as to why we don't say ". . . >that nobody will walk off with any silver." William J. McCleary Editor: Composition Chronicle Associate Prof. of English Viceroy Publications Coordinator of Secondary English 3247 Bronson Hill Road SUNY at Cortland Livonia, NY 14487 607-753-2076 716-346-6859 [log in to unmask] [log in to unmask]