The subjunctive mood
English · Key Stage 2 · The School
A special mood for the unreal
The SUBJUNCTIVE mood is used for something hypothetical — not actually true, wished-for, or imagined. "If I WERE you" does not mean I actually am you. It signals a hypothetical situation, using "were" instead of the usual past-tense "was", even for a single person, which is where it looks most unusual.
Where it shows up
"If I were rich, I would travel the world." "I wish it were Friday." "The teacher suggested he be quiet." Each of these describes something not currently true — a wish, a hypothetical, a suggestion — and each uses a subjunctive form rather than the ordinary past tense.
Everyday speech blurs it
In everyday speech, many people say "if I was you" instead of "if I were you", and it is widely understood. Formal writing, though, still keeps the distinction — which is exactly why it is worth learning, even though you will hear both forms used, sometimes in the very same conversation.
Sentence one: "If I was taller, I could reach the shelf." This describes something not true — use the subjunctive: "If I WERE taller, I could reach the shelf." Sentence two: "I wish I was on holiday." Not currently true — fix to: "I wish I WERE on holiday." Sentence three: "If today was Saturday, we could sleep in." Fix to: "If today WERE Saturday, we could sleep in." Notice the pattern: every single one describes a hypothetical, not-currently-true situation, and every single one takes "were", not "was" — regardless of whether the subject is singular or plural, or how the sentence begins, or what tense the rest of it is in.