I wish I was/were?

<but when you answer a question you don't really know the answer, this will can confuse them more than they were to begin with. >

Your use of "will can" might also confuse them.

<but when you answer a question you don't really know the answer to, this will/can confuse them more than they were to begin with. >

Very true, but that was a typo (thank you for correcting it). However, unlike Robin, I am not answering a question with made-up facts. The difference is in deliberate vs. indeliberate. I did not intentionally mislead anyone. I'm sure Robin did not really mean to either, but this is what the end result would be if the learner believed her.

This is why I am asking her to refrain from answering questions she does not really know the answer to, or at the very least tone down her answers to "Well, I'm no expert, but I think..." instead of stating things as though they are facts.

On my part, I will try to make no more typos, but I am much less adept compared to others at typing. Truthfully, I try to reread my messages before I post, but that typo you pointed out is one I might have never caught. My eye just scanned over those words, because I know I reread that post, yet failed to catch it. I also found that I had spelled "proceeded" as "proceeeded".

<<<<<''I'm not a cookie making type of girl. I wish I was.''>>>>
<<<<<''I'm not a cookie making type of girl. I wish I were.''>>>>


I'm not a cookie making type of girl. I wish I was - a cookie making type of girl.

I'm not a cookie making type of girl. I wish I were - a cookie making type of girl.


Does the difference between these two sentences matter?

Are both these sentences acceptable?

The first sentence 'sounds' more like normal speech. The second sentence 'sounds' like more formal written speech.

Could you explain why the first sentence is wrong, and the second sentence is right?

In my opinion, they are both equally correct.

Best wishes from Mr Robin Michael ________

Robin: <Could you explain why the first sentence is wrong, and the second sentence is right? >

From 'Advanced English lessons online':
http://www.englishpage.com/forums/archive/index.php/t-93.html

Question:
'What is the rule for this?
I wish I were you.
Why can't you say "I wish I was you"?

answer:
'The "were" in "I wish I were you" is one of the few uses of the "subjunctive mood" in English. You use it in cases where the statement in the subordinate clause is "contrary to fact". The thing that you wish is definitely not something that is true, so you use the "were" form. Note that this is actually a statement about the present, but you still use the "were" form.

The same thing comes up in "unreal" or "hypothetical" conditional sentences:
- If she were here, I would be much happier.'

Hi Robin. You have to understand that usage is not always the same everywhere, especially in this case. From you other posts, I'm assuming you are Australian (I think you mentioned a friend in Perth on another thread)? Well, perhaps the subjunctive is dying out there as it is in Britain (I noted this in a previous post).

Here in America, it is the much more common to use "I wish I were" in normal speech. So you cannot advise as to what is "normal" vs "literary" usage on this matter as though it may be "literary" where you are from, it is simply "normal" here.

To me, neither sentence is more right than the other, as they are both native usages.

I'd also like to apologize for assuming you were a girl!

Dear Tiffany

It is nice to hear from you. I was a little bit upset by one of your posts. I have been toying with the idea of Teaching English as a Foreign Language so it was a little bit of a shock to my self confidence.

In Poland at the moment, they are very pleased to take on 'Native Speakers' because they have not had that much contact with the English Speaking World. A lot of young Polish people now see learning English as being the way ahead.

Romania and Bulgaria may soon join the European Union, in which case there may be a flood of people wanting to learn how to speak English, but not being able to afford lessons.

As for where I live, I am an English person living in Aberdeen. Scotland. Perth is quite an attractive town, that is quite close by. Aberdeen is by British standards, quite a long way from anywhere else. The nearest large city is Dundee: Glasgow and Edinburgh are the main commercial centres.

I think I will invest in a small book on Grammar from Blackstones bookshop (cost £1). I saw it yesterday, it is designed to help students write their essays.

To back track a little, is the phrase "be that as it were" subjunctive? Thanks in advance.

Hi Robin,
I don't want to discourage you from teaching, if that is your passion, I would only advise you to brush up on your knowledge of the English language. Solely being a native speaker does not qualify one to teach the language. Of course you can tell anyone that "The boy run" sounds incorrect, but to teach the language I feel more in depth knowledges of the tenses, nuances, different constructions is important. As I said before, I think the fact that you want to teach is admirable. Just don't mislead them into thinking something false.

I also did not realize there was a Perth in Scotland. Are you native to Scotland?

Hi Rene,
I have never heard "be that as it were", but I have heard "be that as it may" - which is an idiom that can be roughly translated to mean: "Even though what was said before is true, it won't affect anything because".

Here is a site I found on "be that as it may": http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/be+that+as+it+may.html

I've googled "be that as it were" and found a few pages where the expression is present, but be aware it is only listed on 37 pages. I have read a few and think they should have used "be that as it may." However someone more familiar with the "be that as it were" expression, may be better able to advise you.

http://www.google.com/search?q=%22be+that+as+it+were%22&start=0&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official

Tiffany,

Do you really hear more people saying "I wish I were" in the States? I hear a lot of "I wish I was." (Remember the line from the Simon and Garfunkel song: "I wish I was homeward bound"?)

<I've googled "be that as it were" and found a few pages where the expression is present, but be aware it is only listed on 37 pages. I have read a few and think they should have used "be that as it may." However someone more familiar with the "be that as it were" expression, may be better able to advise you. >

Hmm... that's a bit strange as I use both of the two equally.

>>Do you really hear more people saying "I wish I were" in the States? I hear a lot of "I wish I was." (Remember the line from the Simon and Garfunkel song: "I wish I was homeward bound"?)<<

One cannot rely on music lyrics to provide an accurate picture of any given dialect or set of dialects. For instance, if one went by music lyrics, one would get the picture that North American English drops clitics and even verb ending -s in informal speech very often when in reality it does not.

And yes, you most definitely hear "I wish I were" more than "I wish I was", which sounds rather off to many here to say the least.

Well, Travis answered your question, but yes I really do hear "I wish I were" more often. As Travis said, you cannot go by song lyrics. Gwen Stefani has song called "If I was a rich girl" - sounded off to me the first time I heard it (and the second, and the third until it was played on the radio every other song). She also sang a song called "Hollaback Girl" - but I've never used that word - in fact I doubt many people have, but if you want to go by song lyrics, you'd think we did.*

I asked my husband (Italian) a related and very coincidental question a few months ago. I asked which he preferred "I wish I was" or "I wish I were". He looked at me as though I'd grown another head and replied, "'I wish I was' are you forgetting English? 'I wish I were' is the only acceptable form!" Why did he say that to me? Because he learned English in the States and did not realize that other forms were more prevalent elsewhere. So yes, "I wish I were" is the normal and prevalent form here.

*Gwen Stefani's song "If I was a Rich Girl" is ultimately a remake of a song called "If I were a Rich Man", but it was actually adapted from a song called "Rich Girl" by a British Reggae duo which in turn directly adapted their song from "If I were a Rich Man". Stefani kept the chorus from "Rich Girl" which had swapped "were" for was" (as the duo was British), but changed other lyrics. Here is a clip of "Rich Girl" which Gwen Stefani's "If I was a Right Girl" is adapted from: http://mp3.juno.co.uk/MP3/SF115651-01-01-01.mp3

''I'm not a cookie making type of girl. I wish I was.''
''I'm not a cookie making type of girl. I wish I were.''

Basically, I think the second sentence "I wish I were..." is correct. You can only add past tense after "wish".

The first sentence looks a bit weird but sounds ok. We don't really care much about the grammar while having a conversation.It's normally native usage.