Do you want to change something about your present situation? I know that I do!
It's 35 degrees here and I am sweating like a pig! Or maybe you have done
something in the past that you now regret, something you look back on and
think "oh no that was a terrible idea!". Do you have any friends that have annoying
habits that really drive you crazy? To express these things in English we need
to know how to use "wish" and "if only". My name is Toby, this is SMASH English and
here is all you need to know about "wish" and "if only" for the B2 First
Cambridge exam.
We use "I wish" or 'if only" + the past simple to talk about present situations
that we want to change. For example, I wish the weather were not so hot.
The weather is very hot in the present, I think this is terrible so I wish the
weather were not so hot. I wish I were rich because I'm not rich and I would
like to be rich. Notice that here we are using "were" instead of "was". "was" is correct
too but we use "were" to emphasize that something is unreal, something is
hypothetical. Very similar to the second conditional: "if I were you" not "if I was
you" Oh my god! Shut up, Johnny. I should so be
with like Trey! He knows how to treat me! He tells me I'm beautiful every single
day and I deserve it because I am beautiful! No... I'm... My god! Shut up! I wish
you were dead! Actually no, I wish I were dead and then you'd know what it was
like to live in a world without beauty! yeah! Oh and I wish I had more
subscribers because right now I have very few so uh... yeah? Thanks! We use "wish"
and "if only" + the past perfect to talk about regrets: things we did do or
didn't do in the past that we now think were bad ideas. For example: if only I had
not eaten all that pizza, I feel terrible now! This means I did eat
the pizza and now I think that was a very bad idea. If only I hadn't become an
English teacher, now I would be rich! So this means that I am an English teacher
and I'm not rich. Johnny I'm so sorry, oh my god! I wish we hadn't argued! I wish I
hadn't said those horrible things to you! If only I hadn't said those horrible
things! Johnny, where are you going? Johnny, please don't go! Johnny! Johnny!
Yeah, Trey!? Hello, hello! Right, yeah, yeah, yeah it's me: Monica!
Yeah, yeah I wish I hadn't called Johnny like if only I hadn't called Johnny. It
was a really stupid thing to do and I wish I had chosen to go out with you
instead so right now I'm free whenever you want me to be free so you're... Trey?
Trey!? We use "wish" or "if only" + would + infinitive to express
annoyance. Someone or something is doing something and you really don't
appreciate it. For example: I wish you wouldn't shout all the time. This means
you do shout all the time and I do not like it. If only it wouldn't rain so much!
This means it rains a lot and I don't like it. If only you wouldn't drive so
fast! One day you could crash! This means that you drive very fast regularly, I'm
worried you will crash so I get to very angry with you when you drive fast!
So when could you use these structures in the exam? Well part two of the use of
English of course: the Open Cloze part of the test. Normally this will be the
auxiliary verb in the structure so the was, the were, the had. Maybe if they are
feeling especially cruel: the would. For example: "he wished he hmm not been
so short-sighted". Well here we're talking about a regret so the auxiliary verb
is "had". "If only more people hmm more understanding of the situation". Here we
are talking about something in the present that we want to change so we
need "were": the past simple. Or maybe "she wished her boyfriend hmm stop
complaining". Well now we are expressing annoyance so the answer is "would". You can
tell by looking at the grammar structure of the sentence whether you need a were,
had or would. Of course part four of the use of English, the word transformations,
often has questions that require you to understand "wish" and "if only". An
example could be "I can't be on the basketball team because I am not tall
enough". The answer: "I wish I were taller so I could be on the basketball team" or
"John regretted not studying harder at school". Here we're talking about regret
because we have the word "regret". "John wished he had studied harder at school".
Simple, right? So just look for it, you will probably find it and then you can
say "yes I know how to do this because it's really easy!". Part 1 of the speaking
exam is another great opportunity to use this to avoid using the present simple.
Don't use the present simple in part 1! Remember your answers don't need to be
true so just try to use this grammar whenever you can. Do you have a brother?
If only I had a brother he would be my best friend! Do you like eating in
restaurants? I love eating in restaurants! if only I could go to restaurants more
often! Do you have any plans for the immediate future? No, I don't.
If only I could plan for my immediate future but I cannot because of COVID. So
your answers don't need to be true just try and use the grammar and the
examiner's will be very happy with you! And with that we are finished! Now you
know all you need to know about "wish" and "if only" for the B2 First Cambridge
exam. If you liked the video don't forget to SMASH that like button, subscribe if
you haven't already, leave a comment down below! My name is Toby and this was SMASH
English.