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Lilia
¿was/ were? I'm confused
Well, i was listenig music when appear:
"If I was your boyfriend, I'd never let you go..." (by Justin Bieber)
"If I were a boy(...) I'd roll outta bed in the morning..." (by Beyonce)
Past tense - I understand
- I / he / she / it - WAS
- We / you / they - WERE
but ... SUBJUNCTIVE mood -- ???
- I / he / she / it - ???
- We / you / they - ???
Thank you for your help! ;)
2016년 10월 20일 오후 8:16
답변 · 13
7
In the subjunctive mood I/he/she/it/we/you/they all use "were".
"If I was your boyfriend" could have been "If I were your boyfriend", but Justin Bieber probably has no idea there is such a thing as the subjunctive mood.
Beyonce knows it and says "If I were a boy"
2016년 10월 20일
2
Lilia, el subjuntivo (fuera, tuviera, dijera, hubiera) en inglés actualmente no tiene una forma definida así como nosotros la tenemos en español. Antiguamente había una forma, pero ya no la hay. Por lo que generalmente se usa la forma pasada de los verbos.
If I knew it, I would tell you.
Si lo supiera, te lo diría.
If she came, I would recognise her.
Si ella viniera, yo la reconocería.
Sin embargo, el verbo "to be" teniendo dos formas pasadas "was" y "were" sólo puede usar la forma "were" como subjuntiva.
If I were to tell you that I have your book, what would you do?
Si estuviera por decirte que yo tengo tu libro ¿Qué harías?
Sin embargo, muchas personas, hablantes nativos, usan la forma "was" porque asumen que está bien usar cualquier forma pasada. Pero eso es un error. Es muy similar a cuando la gente dice en español "te pido disculpas". Lo que es un error, se debe decir "te ofrezco disculpas". El ofendido puede pedir las disculpas del ofensor, pero el ofensor no puede pedir disculpas del ofendido, sería equivalente a decirle a quien ha sido ofendido "discúlpate". Sin embargo el error viene de "te pido perdón", lo que es correcto. El ofensor puede "pedir perdón" pero "ofrecer disculpas". Por lo tanto, en una frase subjuntiva se debe siempre usar la forma de "were", no "was", aunque vas a escuchar a menudo a los hablantes nativos de inglés decir "was" en esos casos.
2016년 10월 20일
2
We use "if I was" and "if I were" both in the subjunctive. Native speakers of any language make mistakes so much it becomes normal.
2016년 10월 20일
1
Mikkel is correct: "If I were". Yes, some of us Anglophones say "If I was" (yuck!), but it's incorrect grammar.
2016년 10월 20일
The second is more formal. It means that Beyonce is a girl/woman, so she does not get up from bed in the morning.
2016년 10월 20일
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Lilia
언어 구사 능력
영어, 독일어, 포르투갈어, 케추아어, 스페인어
학습 언어
영어, 독일어, 포르투갈어, 케추아어
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