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Anonymous Posted 18 years ago
Grammar
use of wish
Hello, I need some help with the following sentence This movie is terrible. I wish I hadn't gone to see it. Why do we use the past perfect if the first sentence is in the present tense?
Can somebody help me?
lf
Can somebody help me?
lf
Top answer
It's 3rd conditional. We use this tense to express impossible 'ifs'.
- It's 3rd conditional.
- We use this tense to express impossible 'ifs'.
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3 Answers
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It's 3rd conditional. We use this tense to express impossible 'ifs'.
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The verb wish has a special grammar.
In short, when you wish that some action in the past were not what it actually was (in effect, you are expressing some regret about what happened), you use the past perfect after the words wish (that).
I went to see the movie. I wish I hadn't gone to see the movie.
Helen did not invite John. Helen wishes that she ha
In short, when you wish that some action in the past were not what it actually was (in effect, you are expressing some regret about what happened), you use the past perfect after the words wish (that).
I went to see the movie. I wish I hadn't gone to see the movie.
Helen did not invite John. Helen wishes that she ha
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CalifJimThe verb wish has a special grammar.In BrE that is just the standard way to express a negative in the past. If it were a negative in the present we would use present perfect: I haven't been to see that film, but because what we are talking about is in the past we switch to past perfect. Maybe AmE is different.
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