In English, sentences with the I wish construction cause difficulties. The rules will help you understand the peculiarities of using this phrase.
Beginning to study this construction, you need to know the types of conditional sentences. Review them before learning this expression.
Literary translation of I wish from English into Russian - "I'm sorry." However, when we say I wish, it literally translates as "I wish." For example, I wish my Mom were here - I wish my mom was here (I wish my mom were here).
Regret about events in the present
Let's say we want to say that we regret something we did in the present tense and want the result to be different.
There is the following rule for this: I wish + verb in Past Simple.
Remember that the verb to be will be used in the form were (even with a third person subject)! Learn this rule: I wish I were/she were/he were/it were.
Imagine the situation: today a student performs at a school concert. Any child will expect his parents to come and look at him. But suddenly it turns out that mom and dad could not take time off from work and come to see the concert. Cominghome, you can express your regret:
I wish you, Mom and Dad, were at the school concert today. - What a pity that you, mom and dad, were not at the school concert today. (I wish you were at the school concert today.)
Note that the event has already happened, and the point in time - today - has not yet expired. And if the event happened yesterday, then the moment is gone, so another time will be used with the I wish construction. The rule in English for the past tense will learn further.
Note that the English sentence is affirmative and the Russian sentence is negative. It is because of this difference that confusion arises: you begin to remember how to say in your native language, making a mistake in speech.
Regret about past events
And if we regret some past events? To do this, in the second part, the verb in the Past Perfect tense is used, it is also called the prepast.
For clarity, let's use the same example, just change it a little. Imagine that the school concert was on Friday, and at the weekend you have to go to your grandmother. After returning home and seeing your parents, express your regret that two days ago they could not get to the concert:
I wish you, Mom and Dad, had been at the school concert two days ago
You wish it were different, but you can't change it: the event was in the past.
Expressing dissatisfaction with I wish
Herewhen expressing dissatisfaction, they use the expression "I wish smb would …". Interestingly, this phrase can be reproached by everyone except yourself. That is, the expression "I wish I would" does not exist!
Saying this phrase, show your annoyance with what is happening. Imagine that you are preparing for important exams, and your younger brother, for example, runs around the house and makes noise. Tell him:
I wish you would be quiet! I have an important exam tomorrow! - Could you be quieter? I have an important exam tomorrow! (I wish you were quieter.)
Expressing helplessness with I wish
Just imagine: you've been sick for a week, but you need to learn your homework. They called a neighbor on the desk, but it turns out that he forgot to write it down and cannot help in any way. In this case, it is appropriate to express your regret like this:
I wish you could know our homework assignment. - It's a pity you don't know what we were asked (I wish you knew our homework)
Usage rule: I wish + could + infinitive. Note that the to particle is omitted.
If only: regretting events in the present
To express regret, we can replace the phrase I wish - If only with another expression. The rules will be slightly different. Let's try to understand the difference in usage.
If only is used to emphasize the unreality of desire. When you want to change something but it's impossible:
- If only I weren't so frustrated. If only I weren't so depressed right now. (I regret that Idepressed right now, in the present).
- If only it wasn't snowing. If it wasn't snowing right now. (He's on his way now, but I don't want him.)
- If only she weren't so rude with him. If only she hadn't been so rude to him. (She's being rude to him now, and I don't want her to be like that.)
- If only I had this phone. - If only I had this phone. (I need him right now.)
This phrase expresses a stronger emotion than the phrase I wish. It shows hopelessness, the inability to change anything.
The grammar in the sentence will be the same as in the sentence I wish: If only + Past Simple (verb in the second form).
However, note that an affirmative sentence in Russian will also be affirmative in English, unlike a sentence beginning with I wish. Negative will be negative.
If only: regretting the past
When we want to show our regret from events that happened in the past, we use the Past Perfect tense (had + verb in the third form):
- If only I hadn't chattered like a magpie! - Oh, if only I hadn't talked like a magpie then! (I regret what I said then, but that can't change now)
- If only I had had a bicycle. - Oh, if only I had a bicycle then! (I needed him a long time ago, not now)
- If only my grandmother had won that musical contest! - Oh, if my grandmother had not won this music competition then! (I'm sorry that shethen won)
- If only she had read this article! - Oh, if only she had read this article then! (Then it would do her good, but now it would be different)
Summarize:
To express regret about something at the present time, we use the simple past tense: If only + Past Simple (verb in the second form on the plate of irregular verbs).
To express regret about something that happened in the past, you need to use the past completed tense: If only + Past Perfect (had + verb in the third form in the same tablet).
Replacing If only with I wish
It is allowed to replace the phrase If only with I wish. The semantic load of the sentence will not change from this. See for yourself:
- I wish I weren't so frustrated. - If only I wasn't so depressed now.
- I wish it weren't snowing. - If it wasn't snowing now.
- I wish she weren't so rude with him. - If only she hadn't been so rude to him.
- I wish I had this phone. - If only I had this phone.
And in past tense:
- I wish I hadn't chattered like a magpie! - Oh, if only I hadn't been talking like a magpie back then!
- I wish I had had a bicycle. - Oh, if only I had a bike!
- I wish my grandmother had won that musical contest! - Oh, if only my grandma hadn't won that music competition back then!
- I wish she had read this article! - Oh, ifshe then read this article!
We see that the structure of the sentence hardly changes. The phrase If only is replaced by the phrase I wish, and the rest of the sentence remains unchanged.
Examples of If only/I wish with translation: present
Let's try to trace the use of I wish/If only in the present tense using examples:
- I wish I visited the exhibition, you had told me about today. - What a pity I didn't visit the exhibition you told me about today.
- I wish she didn't forget about today's meeting. - What a pity that she forgot about today's meeting.
- I wish our teacher didn't fall ill and came. - I'm sorry that our teacher got sick today and didn't come.
- I wish my sister's cat didn't disappear. She's so worried. What a pity that my sister's cat disappeared today. She is very worried.
- If only it didn't rain cats and dogs. - Oh, if only there wasn't such a downpour today (rain cats and dogs is an English idiom, it matters - a heavy downpour, pour like a bucket)
- If only my mother didn't forbid me from going to the cinema. - Oh, if only my mother had not forbidden me to go to the cinema today.
- If only I knew the answer to the question. - Oh, if I knew the answer to this question!
- If only I could repair cars! - Oh, if only I could fix cars!
Examples of I wish/If only with translation: past tense
Now look at examples of these phrases in the past tense:
- I wish wehad met in the cafe then. - I'm sorry we didn't meet at the cafe back then.
- I wish she had understood what I had meant. - I'm sorry she didn't understand what I meant then.
- I wish her brother had won those contest. - I'm sorry her brother didn't win that competition.
- I wish she had rallied her thoughts and got a good mark at the exam. - I'm sorry she couldn't concentrate on the exam and get a good grade.
- If only I had learned this rule. - If only I had learned that rule back then.
- If only we had kept an eye for him. - If only we hadn't taken our eyes off him back then.
- If only we had ticked him off the list. - If only we could cross him off the list.
- If only I hadn't cheated so obviously at the exam. - If only I hadn't cheated so openly in the exam back then.
- If only I hadn't got "2" in Maths. - If only I didn't get an A in math.
- If only he hadn't taken my favorite shirt to the dry cleaners. - If only he hadn't given my favorite shirt to this dry cleaner.
Recommendations
Experiencing difficulty remembering the I wish construction? The rules for using this expression are easy to remember if you write several sentences every day. Even if the suggestions are simple, don't be discouraged! The main thing is to fix the grammatical structure in your head.
Say out loud the sentences you have written down. Soon you will be able to invent them yourself without writing them first. And do the exercises: the morewrite, the faster and better you remember.
