Hypothesising - I wish / if only
3 important questions on Hypothesising - I wish / if only
We can use I wish or if only + subject + past simple to express an attitude to a hypothetical, unreal situation in the present or future
I wish or if only + subject + past simple
I wish I could go to the conference
If only he didn't always wait until the last minute to decide
I wish I could go to the conference
If only he didn't always wait until the last minute to decide
We can use I wish or if only + past perfect to hypothesise about how something could have turned out differently and express regret that it didn't
I wish or if only + past perfect (had)
I wish I had left on time
If only we had invested in those stocks last year
I wish I had left on time
If only we had invested in those stocks last year
We can also use if only + subject + past perfect in one clause and might/could/would + have + past participle in a second clause
1 tense: if only + subject + past perfect
2 tense: might/could/would + have + past participle
If only we had patented the idea immediately, we could have made a lot of money.
They might have been a success if only their competitor had not entered the market.
2 tense: might/could/would + have + past participle
If only we had patented the idea immediately, we could have made a lot of money.
They might have been a success if only their competitor had not entered the market.
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