82. Was It “Were”?
Thursday, August 23rd, 2007English grammar is so complicated that I often get it wrong, too. For example, consider the following questions:
1. If I was/were you, I would have rejected his offer.
2. If I was/were to accept his offer, I would have to start the job soon.
Answers: 1. were. 2. was.
Did you get them right?
To avoid mistake or confusion, just remember that if the sentence describes an occurrence contrary to the fact or simply saying, not true or not going to happen, use "were". When the situation described is not presupposed to be false (e.g. maybe it is true or going to happen), use "was".
The same goes for other singular pronouns “you,” “she,” “he,” and “it.” (You won’t have this problem when it involves the plural pronouns).
Now try this.
1. If he was/were angry, he’d have exploded by now.
2. I would always call home if I was/were not going back for dinner.
I think you’ve got them right this time.