Look at these examples to see how wish and if only are used.
That guy is so annoying! I wish he'd stop talking.
I wish I lived closer to my family.
If only I hadn't lost her phone number. She must think I'm so rude for not calling her.
I wish they wouldn't park their car in front of my house.
Try this exercise to test your grammar.
- Grammar test 1
Read the explanation to learn more.
Grammar explanation
We use wish and if only to talk about things that we would like to be different in either the present or the past. If only is usually a bit stronger than wish.
In the present
We can use wish/if only + a past form to talk about a present situation we would like to be different.
I wish you didn't live so far away.
If only we knew what to do.
He wishes he could afford a holiday.
In the past
We can use wish/if only + a past perfect form to talk about something we would like to change about the past.
They wish they hadn't eaten so much chocolate. They're feeling very sick now.
If only I'd studied harder when I was at school.
Expressing annoyance
We can use wish + would(n't) to show that we are annoyed with what someone or something does or doesn't do. We often feel that they are unlikely or unwilling to change.
I wish you wouldn't borrow my clothes without asking.
I wish it would rain. The garden really needs some water.
She wishes he'd work less. They never spend any time together.
Do this exercise to test your grammar again.
- Grammar test 2
Hello again HLH,
It's a little hard to comment without some context for these sentences but I'll try.
The only change in these sentences is in when you felt the hope. In the first sentence you still hope now and therefore do not know the result. In the second we only know that you hoped in the past. We don't know if you later learned the result or not. You could say, for example, 'I hoped she passed the exam, but I never heard from her again so I never found out', but you could also say 'I hoped she passed the exam and I was pleased to find out later that she had!'.
If you did find out the result and she did not pass then the past perfect would be used as a way to show that the hope ended: 'I had hoped she passed the exam but unfortunately she didn't'.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello. Can you help me, please ?
Can i say: '' she wishes you felt better'' or '' she wishes you would feel better''. And why?
Hello thebaongoc,
The correct form is ''''you felt...'
After 'wish' we have several choices.
We can use a past form to talk about the present we would like. For example:
He wishes he had a big house >>> He doesn't have a big house and he is imagining an alternative present.
We can also use a past perfect after 'wish' to talk about a past we are imagining. For example:
She wishes she had studied maths instead of biology >>> She didn't study maths and she is imagining an alternative past.
We can also use 'would' after 'wish'. However, this only describes choices. For example:
I wish you would stop talking >>> this is fine (if a little rude) as talking or not talking is a choice.
I wish you would feel better >>> this is not correct as how we feel is not a choice we have. We can't choose to feel better or worse; we just experience it.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
In this sentence "I wish tomorrow...Sunday" , l should use "were" or "would be".
Hello thebaongoc,
The correct form is 'I wish tomorrow were Sunday'. We only use 'would' when we are describing something a person could choose to do or not do. What day it is is a fact about the world, not a choice.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello
when we do know the result or outcome we use 'hope' in a past tense
We just have two structures
I hoped you would pass the exam
OR
I hoped to pass the exam
my questions
- can I use
I hoped she passed the exam
OR
I hoped she was cooking yesterday
OR
I hoped she has passed the exam
OR
I hoped she had passed the exam
- can I use
I hoped you could pass the exam
OR
I hoped you would have passed the exam
OR
I hoped you could have passed the exam
what is different wish and hoped in past when we do know the result
They are all the same meaning ?
I hoped you would pass the exam
I hoped to pass the exam
I wish she had passed the exam
Hi HLH,
I'll try to answer your questions.
Note that in all of your examples, you used the past simple "hoped", so it means you hoped this some time in the past, not right now at the moment of speaking this sentence.
For your last question about "wish" and "hope", they are different. "Wish" shows something that you would like to have happened differently. If you say I wish she had passed the exam, it means that in reality she did not pass the exam.
I hope that helps.
Jonathan
LearnEnglish team
Can you please tell me whether the sentences are correct and their differences.
My wife doesn't know how to cook. I wish she knew how to cook.
My wife doesn't know how to cook. I wish she would know how to cook.
Hello KemKem,
The first sentence is correct. Wish here describes something which is not true but which you would like to be true. To talk about the present after wish we use a past form, just as you did,
The second sentence is not correct. We can follow wish with 'would' when we are talking about a choice. For example:
This describes a choice she can make if she chooses. You can think of it as meaning 'I wish she would decide to....'
In your second sentence there is no choice. You could say 'I wish she would learn...' or 'I wish she would take a course...' or 'I wish she would try harder', but we cannot choose to know something. Therefore 'would' is not possible here.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello, sir
Can you help me, please?
Can you tell me the difference between these sentences:
1. I wish Sarah would come.
and I wish Sarah were here now. (Why not: I wish Sarah would be here now?)
2. I wish someone would buy me a car.
and I wish I had a car. (Why not: I wish I would have?)
Thank you so much for your help.