# he was ,he were



## Jesus71

hola cual de las dos es correcta 

he was playing when ...

he were playing when...


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## Wandering JJ

'He' is singular, therefore 'was' is correct.


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## Jesus71

Giovanni felt as if he were talking to a very small child. Her spirit sparkled like clear water.

lo he sacado de un listening esta mal entonces?


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## Doraemon-

En subjuntivo (es raro en inglés, pero existe) es were.


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## Wandering JJ

Jesus71 said:


> Giovanni felt as if he were talking to a very small child. Her spirit sparkled like clear water.
> 
> lo he sacado de un listening esta mal entonces?


Esa es una oración completamente distinta. En la primera dijiste 'he was playing when...' y solo esta está bien. En la segunda, el uso de 'were' sigue 'as if' y es absolutamente correcto.


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## Jesus71

claro pero es ahi donde me lio ya que supuestamente el con he (singular) iba "was" 
cuando se usa el "were", en que casos?


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## Josselyn

hola 
se usa "were" cuando la acción es imposible (se sobreentiende que no es posible) como en la frase If I were you (I am not you)
Josselyn


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## Wandering JJ

Jesus71 said:


> claro pero es ahi donde me lio ya que supuestamente el con he (singular) iba "was"
> cuando se usa el "were", en que casos?


If I *were* to answer your question, you would know as much as I do. 

P.D. ¿No tiene tecla de mayúsculas tu ordenador?


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## TheVioxini

I was
You were
He/she/it was
We/You/They were

Todo lo demás está mal excepto por ciertos casos del subjuntivo. También he visto el típico "you was" sin subjuntivo y sin nada, símplemente es una forma de hablar coloquial y muy informalmente.


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## spilorrific

Jesús71, se diría en español "como si fuera...", ¿no? La mujer no es niñita -- pero parece así. Se llama esta situación en inglés "condition contrary to fact." Se necesita el subjuntivo de vez en cuando en inglés también. Más ejemplos: It is important that you BE (or "arrive") on time for your appointment./ He spoke to her as if he were her boss. (He is not her boss.) I think your difficulty comes from the fact that in the cases of MOST verbs, the "you" form of the verb is the same for declarative or subjunctive (You change your clothes. vs. It is imperative that you change your clothes.) but for the verb "to be," the "you" form of declarative and the "you" of the subjunctive are NOT the same. (You ARE here today. vs. It is necessary that you BE here tomorrow.) Buena suerte con los "listening"... no les gustan a mis estudiantes.


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## Doraemon-

Se usa were en subjuntivo (en primera/tercera persona de singular, se entiende).
I was in London. (ESTABA en Londres)
I wish I were in London. (ojalá ESTUVIERA en Londres)


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## spilorrific

Doraemon- said:


> Se usa were en subjuntivo (en primera/tercera persona de singular, se entiende).
> I was in London. (ESTABA en Londres)
> I wish I were in London. (ojalá ESTUVIERA en Londres)


Sí, pero también se usa "be" como se ve en el ejemplo que escribí. Depende de la situación.


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## Doraemon-

Claro. Were en pasado, Be en presente ("en vez de am/is/are, no de was").
I wish he were in London -> Ojalá ESTUVIERA en Londres
I wish he be in London -> Ojalá ESTÉ en Londres


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## Wandering JJ

Well, this native speaker has never heard anyone say "*I wish he be in London". ¡Nunca jamás!


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## spilorrific

Wandering JJ said:


> Well, this native speaker has never heard anyone say "*I wish he be in London". ¡Nunca jamás!


And this native speaker was merely trying to help someone understand that the subjunctive form "be" exists(as well as "were") since another post made it sound as though only "were" existed. No offense meant, I assure you.


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## Doraemon-

I was trying to use the same exemple as above to show the grammatical difference (were/be are used in past/present more or less as in Spanish subjunctive), but you're right that it can sound a bit unnatural. "I wish you be there for only seeing with your eyes" or "I wish you be'n't a conjurer" sound better?


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## cubaMania

Doraemon- said:


> ...I wish he be in London...





Doraemon- said:


> ..."I wish you be there for only seeing with your eyes"
> or "I wish you be'n't a conjurer" sound better?


No, not in modern English.



spilorrific said:


> ...It is necessary that you BE here tomorrow.....


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## spilorrific

Greeting, colleagues -
I was not trying to use "be" in the example that the original message included. I supplied others. See Tues. @ 6:02 p.m. I was supplying a couple of other examples so that the person writing for help would know that there was another "odd-sounding" form besides "were" ("be" sounds odd to many people who are studying English). Sorry for any confusion that resulted.
LWS


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## Doraemon-

gracias cubamania. Por lo que veo el subjuntivo en inglés es infinitamente más complicado de lo que parece.
¿Por qué con "It's necessary that you" sí que se usa el subjuntivo y "I wish you" no (pero en pasado sí)? No lo entiendo, la verdad.
Por cierto: la primera frase (I wish you be there for only seeing with your eyes) es de una novela del siglo XX, pero bueno...


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## spilorrific

spilorrific said:


> Greeting, colleagues -
> I was not trying to use "be" in the example that the original message included. I supplied others. See Tues. @ 6:02 p.m. I was supplying a couple of other examples so that the person writing for help would know that there was another "odd-sounding" form besides "were" ("be" sounds odd to many people who are studying English). Sorry for any confusion that resulted.
> LWS


What I ought to have said was to see post #10 instead of a time / date reference.
Here is are some links that may help you, Doraemon.
Subjunctive mood - Grammarist
ENGLISH PAGE - Subjunctive


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## Doraemon-

Thanks spilorrific. I understand well the logic behind of the subjunctive (it's thousands more times used in Spanish), but after reading it I can't still see the difference between "It's necessary that you be..." and "I wish you be...." as the same "es necesario que estés" "ojalá estés".


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## spilorrific

Maybe someone else can assist. Sorry, but my plate is fuller than full right now.  Demasiado por hacer hoy....


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## Sprachliebhaber

In the present tense, "I wish you [+ verb]" means "deseo que tú..." and in English the verb is the infinitive. "I wish you to be...".

"Ojalá estés..." is "I hope you are...", present indicative, and it is not followed by a subjunctive. "Ojalá estés contento" = "I hope you are happy" (indicative); "ojalá estés estudiando" = "I hope you are studying" (indicative).


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## cubaMania

Doraemon- said:


> gracias cubamania. Por lo que veo el subjuntivo en inglés es infinitamente más complicado de lo que parece.
> ¿Por qué con "It's necessary that you" sí que se usa el subjuntivo y "I wish you" no (pero en pasado sí)? No lo entiendo, la verdad.
> Por cierto: la primera frase (I wish you be there for only seeing with your eyes) es de una novela del siglo XX, pero bueno...


Wikipedia tiene una buena explicación del tema aquí:
English subjunctive - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sugiero leer el texto entero, pero saqué unas citas que pertenecen específicamente a tu problema:

PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE FORM


> The main use of the English present subjunctive, called the _mandative_ or _jussive subjunctive_,[2] occurs in _that_ clauses (declarative content clauses; the word _that_ is sometimes omitted in informal and conversational usage) expressing a circumstance which is desired, demanded, recommended, necessary, or similar.
> ...
> 
> 
> _I insist (that) he *leave* now._
> 
> _We asked that it *be* done yesterday._
> 
> _It might be desirable that you *not publish* the story._
> 
> _I support the recommendation that they *not be* punished._


PAST SUBJUNCTIVE FORM


> The main use of the past subjunctive form is in counterfactual _if_ clauses (see English conditional sentences: Second conditional):
> 
> 
> _If I *were* a badger, I would choose that color._
> _He would let us know if he *were* planning to arrive late._
> Note that the indicative form _was_ might be used in sentences of this type, but _were_ is sometimes preferred especially in more formal or literary English.


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## spilorrific

Excellent. Thanks, cubaMania.


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## Wandering JJ

Doraemon- said:


> Por cierto: la primera frase (I wish you be there for only seeing with your eyes) es de una novela del siglo XX, pero bueno...


I agree, but the words were being spoken by a sick Indian soldier. The book is well written in that the author, Chaturvedi, reproduces the style of speech that would be quite natural in English spoken in the Indian subcontinent. However, we should not use quotations from non-native sources when explaining English grammar to first language Spanish speakers, unless in response to a question by them. It may cause confusion and give rise to misleading posts.

Cheers.


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