would rather ....

Question

Hi everyone,I've searched for some grammatical information about would rather in Google search engine for a long time, and I haven't found what I need. So, I hope I can get an urgent help for the following:I know how to use ( would rather ) in terms of expressing present and future preferences. But we if we wanted to express a past preference using WOULD RATHER.For example " I wanted my friend, Olivia, to stay with me last night, but she insisted to leave."Which one is possible to be said in such a situation?" I would rather have her stayed with me last night"or" I would have rather she stayed with me last night"or" I would rather that she had stayed with me"Which one is correct? In the daily spoken langauge, what would Americans or British people use if they want to express a past preference ? Do the use the same( one of the above), or there is another way to say that?? Thanks a lot

Goodman · Accepted Answer

This is my take:
The use of "would rather" is not restricted by time. In certain aspects, it contains a conditional element as well.
Here is some info. Hope that helps your question.

Rather than and would rather
Rather than is normally used in parallel structures: for example with two adjectives, adverbs, nouns, infinitives or -ing forms. When the main clause has a to-infinitive, rather than is normally followed by an infinitive without to. An -ing form is also possible.

I would prefer to leave now rather than wait.
You ought to admit your crime rather than defend it.
I would prefer to go in August rather than in July.
I decided to write rather than phone/phoning. (NOT …than to phone)
Would rather
Would rather means 'would prefer to'. It is followed by an infinitive without to.

Would you rather stay here or go home? (=Would you prefer to stay here or go home.)
Would rather + subject + past tense
We can use would rather to say that one person would prefer another or others to do something. We use a special structure with a past tense.

Don’t come today, I would rather you came tomorrow. (=I would prefer you to come tomorrow.)
I would rather you posted this letter. (= I would like you to post this letter.)
To talk about past actions, a past perfect tense is possible

<EDITED by mod to credit your source.>

CalifJim · Answer

Which one is possible ...?

" I would rather have her stayed with me last night" No!
or " I would have rather she stayed with me last night" Yes.
or " I would rather that she had stayed with me" Yes. (Probably the best choice.)

Wordy though it is, even
I would have rather that she had stayed with me is possible.
And some people (Don't imitate them!) say rathered in the past, treating rather as a verb!
CJ

Anonymous · Answer

Thanks Goodman for these information.They really help me a lot understand this grammatical rule.

I have some further questions if you don't mind

GoodmanThis is my take:
The use of "would rather" is not restricted by time. In certain aspects, it contains a conditional element as well.
Here is some info. Hope that helps your http://64.254.227.25/script/clicks.php?params=eJwBOwPE-FzITy0d3vrARSq5sebNsPxTv3MtYa9prxj7LVdBeYldMLfkWekquYMXCyxPeM5HzO1t3WdUXVJt_MhiA5rLlFy5wXTfK9j9oqVYPbbqxf93-bOnICWYZkAnxogTaK3t1dWOZGoHhBCkvEY292YPwSq8UhZ4TonZ2yLyv3UdeIQv77roUoH1F4fBQoBHWqruiSJIaGSCvXZabcYEs93VdwU5m7WixwPeHIJn6dYW5FGeTlJ1sNpeVjKbCV_LAVX0qrFWrm_bxK-YrJeGFEjBvbcbUIKJEDBKSTAykSElGqOrL4sbPpJRVtVT7LDifBaaIZFOdpeZeStVxDSoldQEG3ux_6GKnGdKZhkWmboHBEZmt3aTWq_Hnznm3pXPsrG_vek3haTunNvkiIRfyfUh5sMPWGSO5UJ8ZET6rOpdcok754-1nSFCpijlDz1tMJjDLDgDv6aHiQ8DsajfGqPY4uchQYr5Ievy9baLSy5mYOCGadnCXgzLv0EbSg6U5sgvbyApizvpKn4g-tvmscVipuD4YCyBNVPrOEOGkFNshRyhgJj8iY1DCb20Tc_ghPInDQH2J_jhs6-VPR4s3cahztIvFw3vOvpFTva639qUPna-zt-OimgrwrYB4XS2Al_qjIE1Hoh49DxAZNvKftvGVBH59AaJsM-04IFWnmfWQe0UEOFgElUzj1gxb7nHUczgMh5PNtncJn9oQ8jLjOIYEY8VxMiNl5HE-9DA-hGDvRoGuVaDjm56xRn92yighSnG7ce7g2cYmVfsO6XOobNeH77a4Q6afmwQ7KygoUIt43Qc8NvlVma0Efik7kDC48tSZCxW0-4APmddv4O6EYp0qV1JBWg8qUxYu7NU3JM63M-G8ibzSg7_P36TljYLlWUiwJyLxniSAsT88KfcJc1zPXZvjufEXtvCGxP4GZOEri7Z82OkyTdxt8WD0N_pZLXlquzlz-WSatXW4rPpAH1rVweM4tbue0zFyM4rmdXKLZ9W38QgSNdFV42wFDIkPVpn0H2RcN_-dSXNKquAnQC-y-kRYk_MZg1ehulpl2yW2cVQhbawBtDYA046w8hG-HMW_vj6jMZG26RtvuvEx_Cw_w==.

Rather than and would rather

I would prefer to leave now rather than wait.
Can I change the above statement to this form, in which it gives me the same meaning:
I would rather leave now than wait. ( is it correct?)

We can use would rather to say that one person would prefer another or others to do something. We use a special structure with a past tense.

Don’t come today, I would rather you came tomorrow. (=I would prefer you to come tomorrow.)
In the above sentence, why do we use the past tense to refer to a future preference? Does the meaning change if we use a verb in the simple form?
Such as: I'd rather you come hear tomorrow.( is it correct?)

To talk about past actions, a past perfect tense is possible

I would rather that she had stayed with me.

<EDITED by mod to credit your source.>

Anonymous · Answer

hi CJ,

Thanks so much for answering

CalifJimAnd some people (Don't imitate them!) say rathered in the past, treating rather as a verb!

That sounds nice!!

CJ

Goodman · Answer

I would prefer to leave now rather than wait.
Can I change the above statement to this form, in which it gives me the same meaning:
I would rather leave now than wait. ( is it correct?)

Yes, you can. You can also rephrase it as "I would rather not wait"

Such as: I'd rather you come hear tomorrow.( is it correct?)
No, it sounds odd but "came" correct. As I mentioned earlier, this is the conditional element.
In this usage, the correct form s past tesne of the verb.

It should be I would rather you didn't leave.... In meaning the two are the same to me, though 'I wish' can sound more critical. ...www.usingenglish.com/forum/ask-teacher/35720-would-rather-wish.html - 44k -
DOC]

Conditionals and If Sentences

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The meaning of these connectors is similar to that of provided or if. They are used in informal or .... I would rather you didn’t smoke in my office. ...

Anonymous · Answer

" i would rather have her stay with me last night" correct

Yankee · Answer

Anonymous" i would rather have her stay with me last night" correct

Hi Anon

No, that is not correct. Please read CalifJim's post earlier in this thread.

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