Subjunctive II (The past subjunctive)

Subjunctive II is often known as ‘unreal past’ and is used to talk about the imagined present or future and in conditionals. Subjunctive II represents an action as contrary to reality.

I wish I had more time for rest. (= I have no time for rest.)

He would be prosecuted if he were sent back.

If I were asked to define my condition, I’d say ‘bored’.

Subjunctive II has exactly the same form as the simple past except that the verb be takes its past subjunctive form as either I / he / she / it were or i / he / she / it was. were for all persons is used in formal English. In conversation, however, was is often used instead of were.

If the minister were here, he would no doubt refute the allegations. (formal)

I wish he wasn’t such a big-head. (informal)

Subjunctive II is homonymous with the past indicative and denotes an action simultaneous with the action expressed in the principal clause.

If it were not so late, I’d stay here.

The past subjunctive II is homonymous with the past perfect indicative for all verbs to denote an action prior to the action in the principal clause.

I wish I had not mentioned it. (Жаль, что я не отметил этого.)

Subjunctive II has also continuos aspect forms analogous to the continuos forms of the indicative mood.

You are looking as if you had been crying for hours.

were is a little more usual that was in the advice form if i were you i would / should ... (subordinate clause). In this idiom were is used even in informal speech.

I wouldn’t argue with her if I were you.

If I were you, I’d look for a more interesting job.

NOTE	would + basic form of the verb indicates something we don’t think is true (in the present) or probable (in the future). If I were rich, I would / I’d live in a large house. (untrue at present) If I were rich, I would / I’d travel around the world. (improbable in the future)

In expressions of doubt or unreality were is more usual than was.

He behaves as though he were the owner. (But he is not the owner.)

I wish she weren’t so shy. (= But she is.)

were is also more usual in the infinitive constructions.

If Peter was to apply / were to apply for the post he’d get it.

were, not was, is used when the auxiliary is placed first.

Were I Tom I would refuse.

if + subject + auxiliary can be replaced in formal English by inversion of auxiliary and subject with if omitted.

If I were in his shoes ... . = Were I in his shoes ... .

If you should require anything ... . = Should you require anything ... .

If he had known ... . = Had he known ....

When if means ‘since’ was cannot be replaced by were. were can replace was after if only and wish.

If only Tom were here!

The form were is found in the set-phrase as it were ‘так сказать, как бы’ which is used parenthetically:

They were silent and, as it were, oppressed.

as it were is used when describing someone or something in a way that is not quite exact.

Jim Hopes became our idol, as it were, the man we all wanted to be.

Subjunctive II is used to express:

• wish, in simple sentences beginning with oh, that ... (literary style) and if only ...;

Oh, that the storm were over! Oh, were he only here!

if only indicates hope, a wish or regret, according to the tense used with it. if only clauses can stand alone or form part of a full conditional sentence. if only begins an exclamation of regret or sadness about something which did (didn’t) or does (doesn’t) happen. if only X means the same as I wish X. if only is an intensifier equivalent of if, typically used in proposed unreal conditions.

If only someone had told us, we could have warned you.

NOTE

if only + present tense / will expresses hope: If only he will come in time. = We hope he will come in time. if only + noun phrase / pronoun + ... past simple are used to express regret about the present: If only we knew where she was staying! (= we regret that we don’t know) If only that piece of land belonged to me! (= it doesn’t belong to me, but I wish it did) If only he didn’t smoke. = We wish he didn’t smoke. = We are sorry he smokes. if only + noun phrase / pronoun + would / could + verb expresses regret about the present: If only that boy would listen to his parents. (But he never does.) If only I could swim! (But I can’t. ) if only + noun phrase / pronoun + were (weren’t) expresses regret about the present: If only I were still your age! if only + noun phrase / pronoun + past perfect expresses regret about the past: If only you’d been driving more carefully! If only my mother and father hadn’t quarrelled about me! if only + noun phrase / pronoun + would + verb can express regret about a present action as an alternative to if only + past tense (it has the same meaning as wish + would): If only he would drive more slowly! = We are sorry that he isn’t willing to drive more slowly. if only + noun phrase / pronoun + would can express a not very hopeful wish concerning the future: If only (= I / We wish) the rain would stop! (= We don’t really expect it to stop.)

• wish, in simple sentences beginning with I’d rather (= I’d prefer) or I’d sooner. These expressions followed by past tenses are used in the same way as wishes about the present and express a personal preference about actions. The idea of ‘non-fact’ shows that the speaker imagines a non-fact to be a reality. I’d rather and I’d sooner are used with normal tenses when comparing nouns or phrases. The bare infinitive is used when ’d rather is immediately followed by a verb.

I’d rather you didn’t smoke in here.

I’d rather be a sailor than a soldier. I’d rather tell him myself. (present)

I’d rather have lived in Ancient Greece than Ancient Rome. (past)

I’d prefer can be used as part of a conditional 2 sentence. Note that ‘prefer’ in this type of sentence has an object ‘it’. I’d prefer is not followed by an unreal tense.

I’d prefer it if you didn’t go. I’d prefer you not to go.

I’d prefer tea to coffee.

NOTE

Mind the following patterns: prefer + gerund / noun + to + gerund / noun (general): I prefer (drinking) tea to (drinking) coffee. prefer + full infinitive + rather than + bare infinitive (general preference): I prefer to drink coffee rather than (drink) tea. would prefer + full infinitive + rather than + bare infinitive (specific preference): I’d prefer to live in London rather than (live in) Paris. would rather + bare infinitive + than + bare infinitive: I’d rather fly to Paris than go there by car. would rather / sooner + bare infinitive (present / future reference) and I’d rather + perfect bare infinitive (past reference) are used when the subject is the same as the subject of the following action. would rather + infinitive cannot express preferences in the past. Both would rather / sooner and would prefer can be followed by the perfect infinitive (past reference): Tom would rather read than talk I’d rather play tennis. I’d rather not have gone out with him yesterday. We went to the sea but I’d rather have gone by air. = We went to the sea but I’d prefer to have gone by air. had better + present bare infinitive (present / future reference): He had better consult a lawyer. (= He should consult a lawyer.) it would have been better if + past perfect (past reference): It would have been better if you hadn’t talked to him last night. (= You shouldn’t have talked to him last night.) when the subject of would rather is different from the subject of the following verb we use I’d rather sb + past simple (present / future reference) and I’d rather + past perfect (past reference): I’d rather you stopped smoking. I’d rather you had mentioned that before.

• wishes expressed with would at the beginning of a simple sentence have either become obsolete idioms;

Would that it were true! Would to God I knew! Would to God I had known!

• desirability, advisability, possibility, etc. in simple sentences (with modal verbs);

You really should help you friend. He ought to take care of his health. (duty)

I could help you to translate the text. (hypothetical ability)

I could have helped you to translate the text. (hypothetical ability)

You could see him at work now. (hypothetical ability)

You could have seen him at the office then. (hypothetical ability)

Could you possibly phone him? (hypothetical ability)

Couldn’t you wait here? (request)

He could work harder. (reproach)

He could have worked harder. (reproach)

Could it be true? (supposition; ‘неужели не может быть, чтобы ...’)

It couldn’t be true. (supposition)

As modal verbs have no past Subjunctive II, reference to the past is made by using the perfect infinitive.

You really should have helped you friend.

He ought to have taken care of his health.

He ought to have done it long ago.

Subjunctive II is used in complex sentences:

• in subject clauses after the constructions it is (high) time and it is about time to express unreal past and to say that something is not happening and it should be;

It is time we left. (= We aren’t leaving and we should. Нам пора уходить.)

It’s about time you paid a visit to your mother. It’s high time you paid a visit to mother. (= You should visit your mother.)

It’s high time that the voice of people was / were heard in the House of Lords. (= Their voice isn’t being heard and it should be.)

NOTE

1. We cannot use a negative after it’s time ... : It’s time we didn’t stay. 2. it is time can be followed by the infinitive. There is a slight difference in meaning between the constructions: it is time + bare infinitive merely states that the correct time has arrived; It is time to go. It is time to start. I’m afraid it’s time to put your books away, children. it is time + for + object + bare infinitive states that the correct time has arrived; It is time for us to go. Come on everybody, it’s time for us to get on the coach. it is time + subject + Subjunctive II implies that it is a little late; the adjective high can be added to emphasise the idea of being late; It’s time we were leaving. It’s high time we went. It’s about time we left.

• in object clauses after expressions of wish (in Russian it can be rendered as ‘как бы я хотел; как хорошо было бы, если ...; мне бы хотелось ...; лучше бы ...; ах если бы ..; хорошо бы ...; как жаль, к сожалению, я жалею; мне обидно; напрасно’);

I wish you were here with us now.

wish / if only + Subjunctive II is used to express a desire for something to be different in the present or not true of the present, but we would like it or would have liked it to be true:

I wish I had more free time. (= I don’t have much free time, but I would like some.)

I wish I were a millionaire. = If only I were a millionaire.

Mike wished he had a job: at the moment he’s unemployed.

The desire can be for something which is actually impossible:

If only I were young again.

wish (that) + subject + Subjunctive II expresses a wish or regret about a present situation we want to be different.

I wish I knew his address. (= I am sorry I don’t know his address.)

wish can be put into the past without changing the subjunctive.

He wished he knew her address. (= He was sorry he didn’t know her address.)

if only can be used in the same way; it also expresses the wish of the speaker and is more dramatic than wish.

If only we knew where to look for him. I wish we knew where to look for him.

wish / if only + perfect Subjunctive II are used to express a regret about the past, a wish that something different had happened:

I wish I had gone to the party last night, I stayed at home – I was so bored!

If only I had been here yesterday.  I wish I had been here yesterday. (a simple wish, not the expression of regret)

The past cannot be changed, so you can only wish (with regret) about things which did not happen:

I wish that you had told me about this before I booked the tickets. (= I regret the fact that you didn’t tell me about this.)

I wish I had accepted the invitation. (= I didn’t accept.)

If only he hadn’t been driving so fast! (= Unfortunately he was driving very fast.)

NOTE

1. To express a wish in the past about something which happened further in the past use wished + ... past perfect: When she looked at the photograph, she often wished she hadn’t lost her beautiful hair. 2. To express a wish in the past about something which was not true at the same time use wished + ... past simple: Aunt Martha wished that she didn’t have so many friends. At Christmas time, there were so many cards and presents to buy! 3. Wishes about simple future events are expressed with hope. hope + that + present / present perfect is used for things that may easily happen or may easily have happened. I wish you have a wonderful holiday.  I hope you have a wonderful holiday. I hope it doesn’t rain tomorrow. Cf.: I wish I hadn’t told them my address.. Cf.: I wish I could stay longer. I hope you’ve had a successful trip. We hope you all have a merry Christmas. I hope he’ll stop talking soon! 4. Wishes about the present are: wishes about situations or the speaker’s habits – past tenses (past simple and past continuous): I wish I didn’t smoke so much. (= I smoke a lot.) wishes about actions – would + bare infinitive: I wish they would hurry up. (= They are being slow.)

When the verb after wish is an action verb, the wish refers to the future, and would (wouldn’t) or could of the past simple is used. wish ... would is used to invite someone’s co-operation or to indicate that people or events frustrate our desires.

I wish the weather were / was warmer. (state)

I wish the weather would get warmer. (active)

i wish you would (not) often functions like a polite imperative. if only is less likely because the wish can easily be fulfilled. would expresses willingness. could expresses ability and is usually used after I and we.

I wish you would be quiet.

I wish you wouldn’t make so much noise.

I wish he would come tomorrow. (= I don’t know if he wants to.)

I wish he could come tomorrow. (= I’m sure he can’t.)

I wish she could have come to my party. (= She wasn’t able to.)

NOTE	A wish in the past of this kind contains wound (wouldn’t) / could: She often wished Mark would give more thought to his appearance, but she didn’t say anything.

I wish / If only + subject + would + bare infinitive can be used:

• to express a desire for someone to change their deliberate behaviour in the present or future; this form is often used to criticise or complain about something;

I wish you’d stop looking at me like that. (= You keep looking at me and I want you to stop.)

• with actions which the subject can control, i.e. actions he could change if he wished;

I wish you’d stop shouting. I’m not deaf you know.

• can express interest in the subject’s willingness / unwillingness to perform an action in the present; this is usually a habitual action;

I wish he would write more often. = I’m sorry he isn’t willing to write more often.

• to express a wish for a future change unlikely to happen;

I wish he would stop smoking. (= But I don’t think he will. – wish for a future change unlikely to happen)

• to express dissatisfaction with the present and a wish for change in the future.

I wish he would answer my letter. (= I have been waiting for an answer for a long time.)

I wish students would pay more attention. (dissatisfaction)

• with inanimated subjects because although we know they have no conscious control over their actions (they are not human). Human characteristics are given to them for emphatic effect. So wish + inanimated subject + would is used to express the speaker’s lack of hope or disappointment:

If only the sun would come out. So we could get on with the filming. (= The sun ‘refuses’ to come out. I want it to come out.)

I wish it would stop raining! (= If only it would stop raining!)

I wish the wind would stop blowing. (= But I’m afraid it won’t stop blowing. – wish implying disappointment)

I wish you would ... is a request form when there is no feeling that the person addressed will refuse to perform the request, but there is often a feeling that this person is annoying or disappointing the speaker in some way.

I wish you would be calm.

I wish you would help me. = You should have offered to help me.

I wish you would be more careful. (= Please, be more careful. – request implying lack of hope)

wish / if only + could + bare infinitive is used:

• to describe a desire we know it is impossible to achieve or a wish / regret in the present concerning lack of ability;

If only we could see the situation through his eyes. (We can’t.)

• to express an impossible desire about ourselves.

I wish I could dance but I’m afraid I’ve got two feet left.

I wish I could swim. (= But I can’t.)

• could have is used for a regret about the past. It means ‘It would have been nice if ...’;

I wish your father could have been there to see it all. (= Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to be there.)

wish + may / might can be used in the following cases:

• wish + may + bare infinitive (for the present) or wish + might + bare infinitive (for the past) can be used when the fulfilment of the wish depends on circumstances;

I wish you may get a ticket tomorrow.

He wished he might get an answer by the end of the week.

• wish + might + bare infinitive is used for the present or future to show that the realisation of the action is very likely;

I wish you might stay with us for a whole month.

• wish + might + perfect infinitive shows that the action was not realised in the past;

I wish you might have come to see us last week. (= You did not come owing to unfavourable circumstances.)

NOTE

1. if only is often more emphatic than wish. For greater emphasis we can put a subject between if and only in informal English: If only we’d seen you coming. We might have braked in time. (a regret) I wish we’d seen you coming. We could have put out the red carpet. (a wish) If you only knew how much trouble you have caused. 2. wish can be followed by that, but if only cannot: If only that you’d told me about it earlier. I wish that you’d told me about it earlier. 3. would can’t be used when the subject of the wish and the subject of the change are the same. Instead a past tense or could is used; I wish I would be more energetic. (subject of wish and would are the same) If only I were more energetic. 4. As the change we desire must be possible, even if unlikely, so we cannot use would for an impossible change, e.g. one which the subject has no control over or a change to the past; I wish sport cars wouldn’t be so expensive. (Cars have no control over their price.)  I wish sport cars were not so expensive. If only nuclear bombs wouldn’t have been invented. (a change to the past)  If only nuclear bombs hadn’t been invented.

• in predicative clauses introduced by the conjunctions as if ‘как если бы; как будто бы; словно; как бы’ and as though ‘(как) если бы; (как) будто бы; словно; похоже; непохоже’ and after such link verbs as be, seem, look, feel, sound, etc.:

It looks as if it were going to rain.

The house looks as if it were deserted.

The house looked as if it were deserted.

The house looks as if it had been deserted.

The house looked as if it had been deserted.

• in adverbial clauses of comparison or manner introduced by as if ‘как если бы; как будто бы; словно; как бы’ or as though ‘(как) если бы; (как) будто бы; словно; похоже; непохоже’. were is also often used instead of was in such clauses to indicate unreality or improbability or doubt in the present. There is no difference between as if and as though.

He behaves as if he owned the place. (But he doesn’t own it or probably doesn’t own it or we don’t know whether he owns it or not.)

He talks as though he knew where she was. (But he doesn’t know or he probably doesn’t know or we don’t know whether he knows or not.)

He orders me about as if I were his wife. (But I am not.)

He answered the rules as if he did not know them.

He answered the rules as if he had not learnt them.

You talk as though he were already condemned.

Margaret looked at me as if I were crazy.

as if / as though (subordinating conjunctions) are used in the same way, to express a comparison with something that may be true or may be imaginary.

It looks as though the weather is improving. (the present tense form is – for something which may be true)

She treats me as if she hated me. (the past tense form for unreal meaning)

She treats me as if I were her servant. (the were-form for unreal meaning)

NOTE

The subordinators as if and as though indicate that the adverbial clause is showing similarity but is not to be taken seriously. They are used with ing-clauses in the role of manner adverbials, esp. in fiction. He used to when he was just a kid stand and stare up at us as if asking a question. In academic prose and news, these subordinators are used with purpose to-clauses. Perhaps they satisfied their own curiosity by reciting creation myths to their young, as if to put behind them the chaos of an unknown creation.

The verb preceding as if / as though is in the past perfect when referring to a real or imaginary action in the past.

He talks about Rome as though he had been there himself. (But he hasn’t or probably hasn’t or we don’t know whether he has or not.)

The verb preceding as if / as though can be put into a past tense without changing the tense of the subjunctive.

He looks / looked as though he hadn’t had a decent meal for a month.

• in adverbial clauses of concession introduced by even if and even though ‘даже если бы, если бы даже, хотя бы даже’; in the principal clause the conditional mood is used;

Even though he were here, he would not help us.

Even if it had been raining, I should have gone to the country yesterday.

• in adverbial clauses of unreal condition (in if-clauses); in the principal clause the conditional mood is used;

If she had time, she would do the work. (the reference is made to the present; the present Subjunctive II is used in the if-clause and the present conditional is used in the principal clause)

If he were in town he would meet us tomorrow. (the reference is made to the future; the present Subjunctive II is used in the if-clause and the present conditional is used in the principal clause)

If he had been here last night, I’d have spoken to him. (the reference is made to the past; the past Subjunctive II is used in the if-clause and the past conditional is used in the principal clause)

Cf.: If I were to see her tomorrow, I’d speak to her. (the reference is made to the future; were + infinitive doesn’t imply a rejection of the action, but its remoteness and improbability; such sentences are often translated by means ‘если бы случилось так, ...’, ‘случись так, ...’)

Adverbial clauses of unreal condition can be introduced by the conjunctions if, in case ‘на тот случай если’, granted (that), on condition (that), provided (that), providing (that).

Adverbial clauses of unreal condition can be introduced by any auxiliary or modal verb.

Had you seen me off I should have been very grateful. = If you had seen me off I should have been very grateful.

Could you see me off I should have been very grateful. = If you could have seen me off I should have been very grateful.

NOTE

1. The time to which the condition (if-clause) and the consequence (principal clause) refer need not be the same in both parts of the sentence. The condition can refer to a past time and the consequence to a present time and vice versa. You would feel better now if you had followed the doctor’s advice. 2. In formal writing we find conditional clauses, marked by inversion rather than by a subordinator. This is restricted to clauses introduced by had, should, and subjunctive were. “I would be more hopeful,” Sally said, “were it not for the problem of your testimony.” It is possible to use a paraphrase with if, which is the more common opinion. “I would be more hopeful,” Sally said, “if it were not for the problem of your testimony.”

• in indirect questions with if or whether, esp. depending on expressions of negative or doubtful meaning;

She has never asked me if it were so or not.