{"id":3104,"date":"2017-08-21T14:16:34","date_gmt":"2017-08-21T08:46:34","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/?p=3104"},"modified":"2023-08-02T12:51:32","modified_gmt":"2023-08-02T07:21:32","slug":"if-i-was-vs-if-i-were","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/if-i-was-vs-if-i-were\/","title":{"rendered":"When to Use \u201cIf I was\u201d vs. \u201cIf I were\u201d, Which One is Correct?"},"content":{"rendered":"

A lot of people use \u201cIf I was<\/em>\u201d instead of \u201cIf I were<\/em>\u201d when they use a subjunctive mood in a hypothetical situation.<\/p>\n

Just so you know – this is wrong!<\/p>\n

According to English rules, when you use a subjunctive mood in a hypothetical situation, you should use \u201cIf I were<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n

What is a Subjunctive Mood?<\/h2>\n

The subjunctive mood is used in a hypothetical situation when you state something that is contrary to the fact.<\/p>\n

In other words, when you wish for something that is simply not possible, or unreal, you use a subjunctive mood.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Here are some examples of Subjunctive Mood:<\/p>\n

✅ If I were you, I would work harder.<\/p>\n

✅ If I were your father, I would take good care of you.<\/p>\n

✅ If you were my girlfriend, I\u2019d never let you cry.<\/p>\n

✅ If he were taller, he\u2019d be accepted into the basketball team.<\/p>\n

✅ If she were alive, she\u2019d be super happy to see you succeed.<\/p>\n

In all of these examples, the mood is subjunctive, meaning, the speaker is speaking of a hypothetical scenario that simply can\u2019t be true.<\/p>\n

Where Can I Use \u201cIf I Was\u201d?<\/h2>\n

Based on the aforementioned argument, it\u2019s possible to use \u201cIf I was<\/em>\u201d when something is not true at the moment, but it can be if the speaker tried.<\/p>\n

For example:<\/strong><\/p>\n

If I was the captain of this team, we could win more matches.<\/p>\n

Explanation: The speaker is a team member at the moment, but it\u2019s very much possible that he could be the caption in future. It\u2019s NOT unrealistic for him to lead the team in future.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s consider a few more examples:<\/strong><\/p>\n

✅ If he was guilty of his actions, he\u2019d apologize.<\/p>\n

✅ If Rand was hardworking, he\u2019d make more money.<\/p>\n

As you can see, in these examples, we\u2019re not talking about an unrealistic scenario. Therefore, \u201cwas<\/em>\u201d is more appropriate.<\/p>\n

Be Careful of the Common Mistakes<\/h2>\n

There are many non-native speakers who tend to use \u201cIf I was<\/em>\u201d to explain their past actions.<\/p>\n

Please, note that you absolutely cannot use \u201cwas<\/em>\u201d in a hypothetical scenario of the past. Instead, you should use \u201chad been<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n

For example:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Incorrect<\/strong>: If I was driving, you\u2019d have felt safer.<\/p>\n

Correct:<\/strong><\/p>\n

If I were driving, you\u2019d feel safer. (If the speaker is talking of the present scenario.<\/em>)<\/p>\n

If I had been driving, you\u2019d have felt safer. (If the speaker is talking about a scenario which has passed.<\/em>)<\/p>\n

Final Words<\/h2>\n

As you can see \u201cIf I were<\/em>\u201d is used only when it\u2019s clear something is simply impossible, e.g., if I were a bird<\/em>. Similarly, \u201cIf I was<\/em>\u201d is used when you presume a fair possibility of an event.<\/p>\n

However, in practice, many purists still believe the speaker should stick to \u201cwere<\/em>\u201d if they were speaking of a situation that is currently untrue, e.g., if I were the captain<\/em>.<\/p>\n

On the contrary, many modern speakers believe it\u2019s just a matter of choice. If you want to sound formal, use \u201cwere<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A lot of people use \u201cIf I was\u201d instead of \u201cIf I were\u201d when they use a subjunctive mood in a hypothetical situation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"viral-post","_genesis_custom_post_class":"viral-post","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhen to Use \u201cIf I was\u201d vs. \u201cIf I were\u201d, Which One is Correct? - Common English Errors<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A lot of people use \u201cIf I was\u201d instead of \u201cIf I were\u201d when they use a subjunctive mood in a hypothetical situation.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/if-i-was-vs-if-i-were\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"When to Use \u201cIf I was\u201d vs. \u201cIf I were\u201d\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A lot of people use \u201cIf I was\u201d instead of \u201cIf I were\u201d when they use a subjunctive mood in a hypothetical situation.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/if-i-was-vs-if-i-were\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Common English Errors\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-08-21T08:46:34+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-08-02T07:21:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/maxresdefault.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"720\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Susanta Sahoo\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"When to Use \u201cIf I was\u201d vs. \u201cIf I were\u201d\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"A lot of people use \u201cIf I was\u201d instead of \u201cIf I were\u201d when they use a subjunctive mood in a hypothetical situation.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/maxresdefault.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Susanta Sahoo\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/if-i-was-vs-if-i-were\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/if-i-was-vs-if-i-were\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Susanta Sahoo\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/#\/schema\/person\/65504c517f11f125d025c116260946ba\"},\"headline\":\"When to Use \u201cIf I was\u201d vs. \u201cIf I were\u201d, Which One is Correct?\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-08-21T08:46:34+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-08-02T07:21:32+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/if-i-was-vs-if-i-were\/\"},\"wordCount\":526,\"commentCount\":7,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/if-i-was-vs-if-i-were\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/08\/giving-advice-7-728.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Grammar\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/if-i-was-vs-if-i-were\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/if-i-was-vs-if-i-were\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/commonenglisherrors.com\/if-i-was-vs-if-i-were\/\",\"name\":\"When to Use \u201cIf I was\u201d vs. \u201cIf I were\u201d, Which One is Correct? 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