3/12/2016 EnglishgrammarWish

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Wiheaoutthepreentandfuture
1. wish + past simpleis used to express that we want a
situation in the present (or future) to be dierent. ESLBASE
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I wish I spoke Italian. (I dont speak Italian)
I wish I had a big car. (I dont have a big car) Bethefirstofyourfriendstolikethis
I wish I was on a beach. (Im in the oce)
I wish it was the weekend. (Its onlyWednesday)

2. wish + past continuousis used to express that we want to

be doing a dierent action in the present (or future).

I wish I was lying on a beach now. (Im sitting in the oce)

I wish it wasnt raining. (It is raining)
I wish you werent leaving tomorrow. (You are leaving tomorrow)

Wiheaoutthepat
wish + past perfect is used to express a regret, or that we want
a situation in the past to be dierent.

I wish I hadnt eaten so much. (I ate a lot)

I wish theyd come on holiday with us. (They didnt come on holiday)
I wish I had studied harder at school. (I was lazy at school)

Wih+would
wish + would + bare innitiveis used to express impatience,
annoyance or dissatisfaction with a present action.

I wish you would stop smoking.

You are smoking at the moment and it is annoying me.

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I wish it would stop raining.

Im impatient because it is raining and I want to go outside.

I wish shed be quiet.

I am annoyed because she is speaking.

Wihandhope
To express that you want something to happen in the future
(not wanting a situation to be dierent, and not implying
impatience or annoyance) hope is used instead of wish.

I hope its sunny tomorrow.

I wish it was sunny tomorrow is not correct.

I hope she passes her exam next week.

I wish she were passing her exam next week is not correct.

I hope the plane doesnt crash tomorrow.

I wish the plane wouldnt crash tomorrow is not correct.

Wihandwant
wish + innitive or wish+ object + innitive is used to mean wantin a
formal situation.

I wish to leave now. (+ innitive)

I wish to speak to your supervisor please. (+ innitive)
I do not wish my name to appear on the list. (+ object + innitive)

Wihinxedexpreion
I/we wish you is used in xed expressions.

I wish you a happy birthday.

We wish you good luck in your new job.

Pronunciation
See the phonemic chart for IPA symbols used below.

In connected speech catenation and elision often occur with

wish.

I wish Id studied harder: /wIad/

(catenation the last consonant sound of wish is joined to the vowel

sound in I)

I wish he hadnt done that: /wIi/

(catenation and elison as above, and the rst consonant sound inhe is

elided)

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8 teaching ideas

Anonymous says: Reply

Pictures work best. Something simple like a picture of someone running in the rain or a child
crying (easy to nd in magazines). Question students along the lines of:

What is she doing? (running in the rain)

Does she want to be running in the rain? (no)
What does she want to be doing? (sitting at home with a cup of tea).
So, does she wish she was sitting at home with a cup of tea?

Plenty of build up like this, repetition with dierent examples and dierent pictures will give
students the idea and the structure. You can do the same for any of the wish structures. A
picture of a person in prison:

Why is he in prison? (because he stole a car)

Does he regret stealing the car? (if students are not comfortable with the verb regret: Does
he want to change the past? (yes)
What does he regret? (stealing the car)
So he wishes he hadnt stolen the car?

Mohamed Najih says: Reply

Well, I agree using pictures is a good way to introduce wish to students. Because with one
single picture you can elicit many dierent sentences. Here is another possibility:

I tell students a story in which I appear as a victim. How? for example I tell them that my best
friend went somewhere (attended a party) without inviting me. I appear as if I am really
shocked by this and then ask them what they hope or wish the situation was instead. Of

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course, some get the correct structure right from the start, but some keep hypothesising. If
nobody gets the structure, I tell them and let them express their feelings about the situation.
This way, the structure becomes automatic before even explaining it. Good luck!

Anonymous says: Reply

Provide a context for example, there is a good lm on television tonight, but John has to
revise because tomorrow he has a test.

Can John see the lm?

Why not?

What does he want? Online Grammar Course for TEFL Teachers
He wishes he could see the lm.
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He wishes he didnt have to revise his lessons.

Sedighe says: Reply

I draw a lion chasing a man on the board with a bubble over the mans head I wish I I write
the rst sentence I wish I could run faster then I ask students to complete the sentence in
their own words. Its funny and makes students use the structure.

Renata says: Reply

You can use a magic lamp. Tell students to make three wishes for the genie (it doesnt
matter if they dont use the correct structure at rst). Start talking about your own wishes and
highlight structure on the board. Students correct their own sentences.

Stephen says: Reply

An idea I stole from my ESL teacher trainer is to introduce wish with music. The band, Pearl
Jam, has a song called Wishlist and the song constantly repeats the form, I wish I have the
students perform activities with the lyrics (mazes, jumbles, etc) to become familiar with the
structure. Also, a great listening activity.

John says: Reply

Another important distinction to be made in using wish (talking about the present) is why we
sometimes use would, but at other times simple past.

I give students situations:

You cant understand people on TV so you think I wish they spoke slower.

Compared with talking face to face, you might think I wish she would speak slower.

Give other contrasting situations like:

I wish he drove slower or I wish he would drive slower.

How do feel when you say the former? And the latter? Try to elicit the rule: simple past when
you think theres no possibility of change (at that moment), would when you think there may
be change. Talking about the past is much clearer: always past perfect.

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khalid Elmansouri says: Reply

Thank you for your interesting ideas, but how can we check their understanding ?
-Ss will use simple present instead of simple past and simple past instead of past perfect.

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