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grammar: I wish it was?
Is it better to use "i wish it WAS easier." or "I wish it WERE easier," and why?
Thanks
4 Answers
- Timothy SLv 68 years agoFavorite Answer
Were, because it's the subjunctive, which is used when the content is speculative or in doubt or being guessed at. You will often see it in the vicinity of "if".
- Anonymous8 years ago
They're both correct, except that the "were" form is more common in formal style.
The rule with traditional grammar is that hypotheticals are expressed with the subjunctive mood:
"I wish it were <whatever>".
However, many speakers, even educated ones, use the past indicative (simple past tense form) for hypotheticals ...
"I wish it was <whatever>"
... and furthermore the evidence is that this has always been the case. Traditional grammar simply wasn't reflecting real-world usage.
Source(s): Native UK English speaker, technical writer - Anonymous8 years ago
It Were is grammatically correct, but in urban talk people mostly say It Was. ;)
