48 to WISH

M: Today’s episode is about “TO WISH” ! (music : “when you wish upon a star….your dream comes true” … ) C : “when you wish upon a star your dream comes true”, well, it’s August and there are a lot of shooting stars right now, we should all give it a try and WISH upon a star, MAKE A WISH listeners! M : I think the best thing in making a wish is that you take a moment to think about what it is that you really want. C : Yes, that’s important! Be careful what you wish for when you see a shooting star! M : Ok, let’s take a look at this verb, to wish. C : first off, we can use it to WISH SOMEONE WELL. Like in: “I wish you all the best in your new job!” or “I wish you well with your career”. M : or “I wish you a speedy recovery”, “I wish you a safe journey!” C : right, or : “wish me well on my exam!” M : oh, and there’s the famous : “I wish you a Merry Christmas!” C : yeah, Marta, thank you, but… it’s August though. M : Ok, it’s not the right time of the year, right. So, to wish someone something. C : uh-huh, but we can also use the verb to wish TO EXPRESS REGRETS both for the present situation and about the past. Marta, try and give us an example. M : …how about: “I wish I lived in Nashville” ? C : ok. Where do you live? M : In Italy. C : So when you say “I wish I lived in Nashville” you refer to the present situation. M : Yes, but I have to use the simple past of the verb, I wish I lived in Nashville. C : Exactly. Let me think of another example…you’re allergic to grass pollen, aren’t you? M : Yes, I am, unluckily. So… I wish I could enjoy springtime in the open air, but I can’t. C : I wish I could, right. M : now listen to this song: “how I wish, how I wish you were here” C : Pink Floyd, great song. “how I wish you were here”, again, we use the simple past to talk about the present situation. I wish you were here right now. Can you think of another example? M : I wish I was taller! C: com’on, you’re not that short! M : but I’m not tall either. I wish I was taller. C : You can also say: I wish I were taller. I WISH I WAS, I WISH I WERE, both forms are correct. I wish I were is more formal. So… for example… it’s overcast today. I wish it was sunny, or I wish it were sunny. M : Got it. C : Now let’s talk about past regrets. Like in: I wish my team had won the championship. That means: my team didn’t win. I wish it had. M : we use the past perfect here. C : past perfect, good. For example: I wish I had chosen another school when I was in my teens”. Or: I wish you had told me about it before”. M : we can also use “IF ONLY” instead of wish, correct? C : Yes. Using the past perfect when talking about past regrets : If only I had chosen another school when I was in my teens! Or : if only you had told me about it before! And using the simple past when talking about the present situation: if only I was taller! If only I lived in Nashville ! M : or : If only I had more time to study English! That is: I wish I had more time to study English! C : perfect! C: Well, friends, that’s all for now. We wish you the best of luck in your English journey and we hope that you can find enough time to listen to our podcast and practise the language! Previous episodes are available for download on Podomatic and iTunes. M : Also, stop by our Facebook page and say “hi”! C : Or log onto our blog at www.myamericanfriendblog.com . Follow us on Twitter, or browse our videos on Youtube. Thanks for listening everyone! M . wishing you all the best. See you soon! C : Bye!