The use of subjunctive II

It may be used independently of other clauses to express :

advice:

Smb. had better

do smth / not do smth

She had better go there at once. (Ей лучше пойти туда сразу.)

You’d better not tell her about it. (Лучше не говорите ей об этом.)

preference:

Smb.

{

would had

}

rather (sooner)

do smth / not do smth

I would sooner have some sandwiches. (Я бы лучше съела несколько бутербродов.)

I would rather not stay here. (Я бы лучше не оставалась здесь.)

Would you rather have tea or coffee? (Вы предпочитаете чай или кофе?)

preference:	Smb.	’d had would	}	rather	smb. did smth.
					smb. had done smth.

I’d rather you went now. (Я бы предпочел, чтобы вы сейчас ушли.)

She’d much rather you had stayed. (Она бы предпочла, чтобы вы тогда остались.)

wish in if-clauses:	If only Oh, if Oh, that	smb.	did smth.
			had done smth.

If only I could see him again! (Ах, если бы я только мог увидеть его снова!)

If only I had told her the truth! (Ах, если бы я сказала ей правду!) – в прошлом

Object clauses

Subjunctive II is used in object clauses after the verb "to wish" to express an unreal desired action.

Smb.	{	wishes wished will wish	smb. did smth.
			smb. had done smth.

I wish you were always here. (Жаль, что вы не всегда здесь.)

I wish you had been there with us. (Как жаль,что вас не было с нами.)

If the desired action refers to the future or is pronounced with a bit of annoyance the following forms may be used after the verb "wish".

I wish you would stop chattering. (Как хорошо было бы, если бы ты прекратила болтать.)

I wish I could remember all this. (Как хорошо было бы, если бы я могла всё это запомнить.)

Attributive clauses after the phrase "It's (high) time..."

Such clauses are used with Subjunctive II. Most often the expression "It's high time..." is followed by the Past Indefinite form of the verb (very rarely, almost never by the perfect).

It

{

is was

}

time

smb. did smth.

It's high time we knew where we stand. (Пора бы нам знать наше положение.)

It was time he told us the aim of his visit. (Ему пора было сообщить нам о цели посещения.)

Predicative Clauses

Subjunctive II is used in predicative clauses after the link verbs of "being" and "seeming": to be, to feel, to look, to sound, to seem etc.). The conjunctions "as if" and "as though" are used to connect the principal and the predicative clause.

to be to look to seem to feel	as if as though	smb. did smth.
		smb. had done smth.

It looks as if she knew something. (Она выглядит так, будто знает что-то.)

You look as if you had not slept at all. (Вы выглядите так, будто совсем не спали.)

It will be as if nothing had happened. (Все будет так, словно ничего не случилось.)

It’s not as if you knew him. (Ведь вы же не знаете его.)

It’s not as if you had tried. (Ведь вы же не попробовали.)