Page 51 - Grasp English B2 (Grammar Book)

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Wish clauses: present/past

Wish is used to talk about regrets or desires in the past or the present.
a. talking about the present and future

When we talk about present hopes and wishes, wish is followed by the past simple tense. However, it
refers to the present time.
e.g.
I wish I knew how to solve your problem. (I don’t know how to solve it)
Jack wishes he was with his parents. (He isn’t with his parents)
Note: We can also use were instead of was with the pronouns
I, he, she, it when talking about present wishes.
e.g.
I wish I was/were taller.
We use wish with would + V to say how we want somebody to behave in the future.
e.g.
The mother wishes her son would eat more vegetables. (Because he doesn’t eat vegetables)

Wish is also used with would to talk about things that we find annoying and want to change. However,
we can use wish + with would just to talk about actions and changes, not situations.

e.g.
I wish it would stop raining. (I want the rain to stop because I’m bored of it)
I wish I would have a car.
I wish I had a car.
b. talking about the past

Wish is followed by the past perfect tense (had +V3) when we talk about regrets in the past.
e.g.
I wish I had called her before I left home. (But I didn’t call her before I left home)
Miley wishes she had known Richie ten years ago. (But she didn’t)

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