Was/were
Hi, I'm trying to learn some English. I have a sentence:
I wouldn't have told you this if there was/were still hope left.
I know there is a rule, something about subjunctive/past subjunctive, where it should be were instead of was if something is said hypothetical, but I'm not sure if my sentence is affected by it.
Thank you for your help.
Top answer
I wouldn't have told you this if there were still hope left. It´s the subjunctive mood.
- I wouldn't have told you this if there were still hope left.
- It´s the subjunctive mood.
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I wouldn't have told you this if there were still hope left.
It´s the subjunctive mood.
0I wouldn't have told you this if there was/were still hope left.
There's no significant difference; it's a matter of style with irrealis "were" being somewhat more formal then preterite "was". Both indicate varying degrees of remoteness from factuality, and some speakers usually, if not always, use preterite "was".
It's not actually a subjunctive clause, though many
0AnonymousI know there is a rule, something about subjunctive/past subjunctive, where it should be were instead of was if something is said hypothetical, but I'm not sure if my sentence is affected by it.
Yes, your sentence is affected by it because it has a main clause with would and an if-clause. Whenever you have those two elements in your
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