Would like

Question

I am just wondering the modal verb "would like" is past tense or present tense. We all know that "would is the past tense of will" and when would is used in current/present situation it always has the hidden meaning of second conditional like

ex: He wouldn't tell you where she is (hidden/silent if: if he had a chance).

ex: There isn't anything that he wouldn't do to get to the top (hidden/silent if: if he had the chance.)

Somehow, from my observation, the modal verb "would like" has different meaning

ex: What kind of person would you like to marry?

I would like someone who is talented and handsome. (not was?)

ex: What would you like to have for dinner tonight?

I would like to have lamb chop for dinner if we eat out tonight. (not ate out?)

whenever someone asks me what I would like to eat, my mind always think they are asking in second conditional like "what would you like to eat/ to have if you had the choice", so my answers always will be "I would like to have dessert/something if I had the choice." But somehow people tend to use "would like" as a polite request in present tense

ex: I would like to have a burger so I can eat it on my way to work.

Could someone please tell me what is the principle behind those "would like" sentences? Or "would like" simply has the polite meaning of "want", which doesn't have anything to do with second conditional in these cases?

Avangi · Accepted Answer

AnonymousI am just wondering the modal verb "would like" is past tense or present tense.

I take it as present tense.

Now I would like to sing a little song. (I'd say that "would" refers to "like," not to "sing.")

"Will like" seems directed more toward the future. I will/would like to see them win the penant.

I still have difficulties in coordinating the meanings with the rules.

If someone asks you what you would like, of course your reply should be polite.

Maybe it's an implied conditional.

I'll have another, if you don't mind -- if I may.

I would like another, if you don't mind.

I'd like steak and lobster, if it's okay with you -- if it's not too much money.

Edit. Since your grasp of the subject seems quite good, I'm puzzled at what you might mean by "past tense."

Sometimes the form is past tense, but the meaning is not "past time," as CJ was perhaps alluding to.

I'd be pleased to see them win the penant, if they did.

This is a conditional, right?

Anonymousex: What kind of person would you like to marry?
I would like someone who is talented and handsome. (not was?)
ex: What would you like to have for dinner tonight?
I would like to have lamb chop for dinner if we eat out tonight. (not ate out?)

So you're really asking about the tense in the "if" clause, right? Not about the tense of "would like."

That is, what verb tense form do we use with the polite, present tense "would like"?

I'd say present with present, and past with future.

But I hear both of your options in your handsome lambchop examples.

CalifJim · Answer

AnonymousBut somehow people tend to use "would like" as a polite request in present tense

Exactly. would is a modal verb, and the expression would like is an idiom. For purposes of matching tenses with other verbs in the sentence, it is treated as if it were a present tense form. Its meaning is certainly a present-time meaning.

CJ

Anonymous · Answer

Thank you Avangi and CalifJim for both of your replies. I think both of you answered my question with pinpoint precision,

From Avangi:

That is, what verb tense form do we use with the polite, present tense "would like"?

I'd say present with present, and past with future.

But I hear both of your options in your handsome lambchop examples.

From CalifJim:

Exactly. would is a modal verb, and the expression would like is an idiom. For purposes of matching tenses with other verbs in the sentence, it is treated as if it were a present tense form.

After reading both of your answers, I would like to draw my conclusion here. "Would like" is an idiom which has the exact meaning of polite "want".

ex: I would like to have a word with you when you are free.

ex: I would like to have your lamb chop specialty when your cook arrives.

ex: Henselt would like to be an astronaut when he grows up.

ex: Jenny would like to talk to her husband if he comes tomorrow.

ex: We would like to have some peanuts as appetizer while we are waiting for the food.

Are above examples correct? If they are, it seems to me "would like" is really an idiom. Next time I better remember myself to distinguish between the idiom "would like" and the conditional "would".

Avangi · Answer

These are all correct, natural, and common.

Anonymous Next time I better remember myself to distinguish between the idiom "would like" and the conditional "would".

It would not be correct to say or imply that the idiom "would like" may not be part of a conditional.

I would like to go with you, if there's room. (You may not be saying that it can't.)

I really can't speak to the issue of whether or not sentences in which the second clause begins with an adverb of time can technically be considered "conditionals." It's a matter of definition, and which authority you wish to recognize.

I shall answer when I'm ready.

This strikes me as a conditional in a sense.

There's a condition for the time, if not for the truth or falsity of the main clause.

I'm sure that "Jenny would like to talk to her husband if he comes tomorrow" is a conditional.

Whether or not it conforms to the rules of a specific number, I'm not prepared to say.

Others will fill you in.

Edit. As an aside, I'm not sure how you're using "remember" in the captioned quote.

I myself had better remember. OR

I had better remind myself.

"Remind" is transitive (takes an object).

"Remember" is intransitive (does not take an object). (except, "Remember me to your mother.")

We don't say, "I'll remember my mother to pack me a lunch."

Rgdz, - A.

Anonymous · Answer

Thank you for your reply again Avangi.

Sometimes "would like" is an idiom and sometimes it is conditional modal verb, depends on the situation, got it.

CalifJim · Answer

AnonymousAre above examples correct?

All are fine.

Anonymousit seems to me "would like" is really an idiom.

Absolutely.

AnonymousNext time I'd better remember ~~myself~~ to distinguish between the idiom "would like" and the conditional "would".

Good idea. [Y]

CJ

Avangi · Answer

CalifJim
AnonymousNext time I'd better remember ~~myself~~ to distinguish between the idiom "would like" and the conditional "would".

Best solution! [Y]

Would like

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