Structures After Wish

Wish: to want something to be true.

I wish I had $1 million.

***We don’t use wish to talk about what we want to happen in the future. We use hope for that.

I hope it doesn’t rain tomorrow.

I wish it doesn’t rain tomorrow.

Type 1: (Present – General): wish1 + noun/pronoun2 + would/could (not)3 + infinitive4

I wish1 you2 wouldn’t3 talk4 so much.

Use this to talk about general wishes. Meaning, wishes that have little connection to time. Remember, would in the present tense is used to talk about situations that are not real. In the past tense, would is just the past tense version of will.

I wish Vannda would release a new song.

I wish teachers wouldn’t assign homework.

I wish my dad would come back from the dead.

Could (meaning: ability):

I wish my teacher could speak Khmer.

I wish John could walk again.

I wish Lily could join us.

We don’t use would to make wishes about yourself. For example:

I wish I would be taller.

But you can use could to talk about yourself.

I wish I could swim.

Type 2: (Present – Specific): wish1 + noun/pronoun2 + past simple3

1: I wish1 you2 wouldn’t3 talk4 so much.

2: I wish1 you2 talked3 less.

1 and 2 are very similar, but we use this one to talk about situations in a more specific way. Meaning, when we include would, it the sentence usually says something about habit or unchanging characteristics. 2, does not.

Another example:

1: I wish you would die.

2: I wish you were dead.

1: Meaning: I wish you would die in general. That is, I’m not saying when I want the dying to happen, I’m just saying that I want it to happen.

2: Meaning: I wish you were dead now. That is, I wish you were already dead at this moment. The time the dying happens is specified.

Other examples:

I wish I had a stick of gum.

I wish my dad were better at cooking.

I wish I were taller.

I wish you were on the moon.

Type Three: (Past): wish1 + noun/pronoun2 + past perfect3

We use the third version to talk about all wishes about the past.

I wish1 I2 hadn’t spilled3 my coffee!

I wish I hadn’t said that about her.

I wish my team had won the game.