Short answer
The verb form after “wish” helps show whether the speaker is imagining a present situation, regretting the past or wanting something to change. In S06E23, Gav and Em compare three patterns.
Em teaches the contrast through examples in S06E23, then asks Gav for wishes of his own. Learners can use fictional situations rather than reveal personal regrets.
Try this in your next lesson
Compare I wish I knew the answer with I wish I had checked the answer. Ask whether each concerns now or an earlier event.
👇 Scroll down for our practical checklist or activity and download.
Listen to the whole S06E23 discussion in our podcast episode guide here🔊.
Three common wish patterns
Ask learners what the speaker wishes were different before asking them to name the grammar form. The meaning gives the structure a reason to exist. The hosts suggest introducing present wishes before the more complex past-regret form.
For a fuller explanation of wish forms, see Cambridge Dictionary’s grammar guide.
Choose the meaning first
Wish + a past form can imagine a different present: I wish I knew the answer now. Wish + past perfect can express a past regret: I wish I had checked yesterday. Wish + would often expresses a desired change: I wish the noise would stop. These are new practice examples.
Give three fictional situations: someone does not know an answer now, did not check yesterday, and is bothered by a noisy machine. Match them to the models, then invent another situation. I wish I were and I wish I was both occur; were is a useful formal model. An ordinary possible future hope may need hope rather than wish + would.
Gav and Em suggest: a short classroom adaptation
Use this as a starting routine and adapt it to your learners.
- Present situation: “I wish I were taller.” The past form refers to a situation now.
- Past regret: “I wish I had been better at school.” The past perfect refers to something that happened already.
- A change the speaker wants: “I wish it would stop raining.” Wish + would can express a desired change.
Answers and teacher guidance
Now: I wish I knew. Past regret: I wish I had checked. Desired change: I wish the noise would stop.
📥 Download the free teacher practice card (PDF)
Related teaching ideas
📚 Take a Look at More Related Articles on Grammar, Vocabulary, Error Correction & Inclusive Language