Nothing can go wrong vs nothing could go wrong.

[Ruifeng]

[color=red]Nothing can go wrong. / Nothing could go wrong.

1. “Nothing can go wrong” means that I have arranged everything perfectly and I can guarentee that no problem will occur. “Nothing could go wrong” here sounds less certain.

2. “Nothing can go wrong” means that I don’t allow any problem to occur. “Nothing could go wrong” is not used in this case.

Have I got them right?

Thanks.

[Dozy]

1. I agree with what you say about “Nothing can go wrong”, but I don’t think I would use “Nothing could go wrong” by itself in this way. I would typically use that wording in sentences like “I thought (that) nothing could go wrong” or “She said (that) nothing could go wrong”.

2. Yes, that seems right.

[Ruifeng]

@Dozy

1. I agree with what you say about “Nothing can go wrong”, but I don’t think I would use “Nothing could go wrong” by itself in this way. I would typically use that wording in sentences like “I thought (that) nothing could go wrong” or “She said (that) nothing could go wrong”.
   .

So, Dozy, [color=red]could in “I thought nothing could go wrong” is the same as in “She said nothing could go wrong”, it’s the past tense of [color=red]can, right?

[Dozy]

Yes, that’s right. You could also use “Nothing could go wrong” by itself in a past-tense narrative: “All the preparations were in place, and I had checked and rechecked everything. Nothing could go wrong.”