Friday, November 29, 2013

If Only I Had Known

If Only I Had Known

Have you ever noticed how many websites offer lists of things their authors wish they had done differently in the past?
The Workplace Tips I Wish I’d Known From the Start
Things I Wish I’d Known Before We Got Married
67 Things I Wish I Had Known At 18
What I Wish I’d Known Before Starting My Business
Unfortunately, not all the bloggers who express their regrets and offer the fruit of their experience do it grammatically. For every one who writes, “I wish I had known…,” another five write, “I wish I would have known…”
Oh, the things I wish I would have known then that I know now…
30 things I wish I would have known about life
Things I wish I would have known when I got started in software development
Would does not belong in the subordinate clause of the lament.
The verb wish is followed by the past perfect: I wish I had known then what I know now.
A similar error occurs with the use of “if” clauses.
If I Would Have Known Then What I Know Now- 29 Business Owners Speak Out
Again, the would is unnecessary: If I Had Known Then What I Know Now.
Because hindsight is universal, we all need to know how to wish things hadn’t happened, so while we’re at it, we may as well look at how to make wishes about the present and future.
Use past tense to wish regarding the present:
I don’t like this neighborhood. I wish I lived in Bellaire.
My car is a wreck. I wish I had the money to buy a new one.
My husband works all the time. I wish he were not so busy.
Note: “If I were” is the older way of expressing a wish in the subjunctive mood. Like the use of “whom,” the subjunctive in English is dying out. I think most authorities see the take-over of “if I was” as inevitable, but some still feel it should not be used in formal written English.
Use past tense modals would and could to wish regarding the future:
I don’t like this neighborhood. I wish I could move to Bellaire.
My car is a wreck. I wish I could buy a new one.
My husband works all the time. I wish he would quit that job.
And, as already mentioned, to wish the past had been different, use the past perfect:
I wish I had majored in computer engineering instead of literature.
Jack wishes he hadn’t run with a bad crowd in high school.
We all wish we hadn’t eaten so much at the picnic.
Happy wishing.

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