0
User_gary Posted 16 years ago
Grammar

I wish I had children/I wish I had had children

I wish I'd(had) had more children. Then I wouldn't be so lonely now.
I wish I had more children. Then I wouldn't be so lonely now.

Could you please explain to me the difference between the two sentences in respect of "I had had children " and "I had children"?
  

Top answer

Both are odd because it implies there ARE children now, but not enough to not be lonely. The existing children aren't enough, I guess. I wish I had...

— BarbaraPA

  • Both are odd because it implies there ARE children now, but not enough to not be lonely.
  • The existing children aren't enough, I guess.
  • I wish I had...
  • I wish my current state was such that I had more children than I do now.
  • I wish I had had...
Free · every Monday

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.

1 Answers
0
Both are odd because it implies there ARE children now, but not enough to not be lonely. The existing children aren't enough, I guess.

I wish I had... I wish my current state was such that I had more children than I do now.
I wish I had had... The chance for me to have more children is past. I wish that back when I could have had more children, I had done so.
0

Related Questions