In this second part of this series on Past Tenses for Hypothetical Meaning, we are going to look at the structure "It's time ..." and "I'd rather ...".
Remember that in the first lesson, in English, we can use the past tense to express an imaginary or hypothetical situation, in the past, present or future time. This is also true for today's two structures.
IT IS (IT'S) TIME + PAST SIMPLE
We can use IT'S TIME + PAST SIMPLE to talk about an action that should have already been done. The context determines whether it was a short or long time ago, but the feeling of the message is the same, that there is a sense of urgency and that the action really needs to happen now.
For example:
It's time you washed your dishes. I can see cockroaches in the sink.
In this sentence, the speaker is telling someone to wash their dishes. Because there are cockroaches in the sink, we know that the dirty dishes have been in the sink for a long time. Ideally, the dishes should washed on the same night as they are used, or at most, the day after.
This structure follows this form:
THAT is optional and is almost always left out. Just make sure to include a subject (the person performing the following action) and make sure that the verb is in the past simple.
Here are some further examples with paraphrases:
It's time we left. The last train leaves in 15 minutes. (= We really need to go now or we will have to pay $60 for a taxi.)
It's time we bought a webcam. I really cannot miss another Zoom meeting. (= The speaker has missed several important work meetings while working from home, and the boss is starting to get angry.)
It's time you did something about the leaking roof. (= The leak started 3 months ago, and there has already been 2 big storms. The carpet in the living room is ruined.)
We can further emphasise the urgency by adding HIGH or ABOUT to IT'S TIME. HIGH is typically used in British English (and can sound a little formal) and ABOUT more often used in general.
It's high time the government punished companies who failed to meet environmental regulations.
It's about time you arrived. I was just about to go in the cinema without you.
IT'S ABOUT TIME is extremely common and can almost be considered a fixed expression. It is typically used without the subordinate clause (the entire clause that follows THAT) because it is very clear from context what the action is.
(David has just arrived. Sally has been waiting 45 minutes for him.) Sally: It's about time! Do you know how long I've been waiting for you? David: I'm really sorry. The traffic is was crazy.
But!
It's important not to confuse IT'S TIME + PAST SIMPLE with IT'S TIME + TO INFINITIVE. IT'S TIME + TO INFINITIVE is used to talk about doing an action at the right time or correct time. There is no sense of urgency in this structure. Note the different structure, as there is no THAT clause or subject following TIME. For example:
Well, it's 5 o'clock. It's time to call it a day and go home. (= the typical work day is from 9am to 5pm. Now that it is 5pm, it's a good time to go home.)
Ok boys! Come in the house. It's time for you to have a shower. (= mum instructing her children. There is no sense of urgency here.)
WOULD RATHER / WOULD SOONER / WOULD PREFER
We can use all three structure to talk about preference. Preference assumes that there is a choice between 2 or more options and this structure lets us know which one we prefer or would like. There are various constructions here, so pay attention carefully to each particular form and meaning.
WOULD RATHER/SOONER + PAST SIMPLE
We use this to indicate the speaker's preference about somebody else. The PAST SIMPLE indicates that the action (or preference) has not happened yet. WOULD RATHER (often contracted to 'd) is followed by THAT, which is often omitted, then a subject + past simple.
I would rather (that) you didn't smoke in here. Please go outside. (= YOU, the second person, is about to light a cigarette, and your preference is that you would like the person to smoke outside.)
Lucy would sooner (that) her husband spent time with her tonight than saw his friends. (to show the other option in the sentence, use THAN + past simple)
I'm sorry, but we'd rather you didn't join us at the company picnic this year.
WOULD RATHER/SOONER + PAST PERFECT
We use this to indicate the speaker's preference about somebody else. The difference here is that the other person has already performed the action, and the speaker is expressing their preference about what has already happened, and so that it doesn't happen again in the future.
I would rather you hadn't smoked in here. (= YOU, the second person, has already finished smoking in here, and the speaker is disappointed and says you shouldn't have, and not to do it again in the future.)
Thomas would sooner his parents had consulted him first about their family trip to Bali. (= Thomas' parents finished organising a trip to Bali without talking to Thomas. Thomas is unhappy about this.)
WOULD RATHER/SOONER + BASE VERB
We use this to indicate the speaker's own preference in the present time. WOULD RATHER is immediately followed by a BASE VERB (no that or subject like the previous structure).
I would rather go out tonight than stay home and study. (to show the other option in the sentence, USE THAN + base verb)
He'd sooner walk to work than spend time in traffic.
The boys would rather see an action movie than a romantic comedy. (you can omit the verb after that THAN if it's the same verb as before)
WOULD PREFER
We can use the following forms to indicate the speakers preference about somebody else. Similar to WOULD RATHER/SOONER, the PAST SIMPLE indicates that the action (or preference) has not happened yet.
WOULD PREFER IT IF + SUBJECT + PAST SIMPLE (slightly more common)
WOULD PREFER (THAT) + SUBJECT + PAST SIMPLE (slightly less common)
I would prefer it if we stuck to the subject than talked about your personal life. (as the second subject WE contains a foreign person, not the speaker, we need to use past simple afterwards)
I would prefer that we stuck to the subject than talked about your personal life. (Has the same meaning as the previous. We can use THAN + past simple to introduce the second option)
James would really prefer it if the teacher didn't talk so much about her cat and stuck to the subject. (Similar meaning to the first two examples. As the verb is positive, we can use AND + past simple to introduce the other option.)
As with WOULD RATHER/SOONER, we can use PAST PERFECT with WOULD PREFER to talk about an action that has already happened.
I'd prefer it if the tour guide hadn't spent so long talking about that one monument. (= This example refers to a specific tour that has already happened. The speaker is clearly unhappy about one part of it.)
WOULD PREFER + TO INFINITIVE
We can use this to talk about the speaker's own preference in the present time.
I would prefer to go out tonight than stay home and study. (We can use THAN + base verb to indicate the other option.)
He'd prefer to backpack around Asia than go shopping in New York. (We often contract would to 'd.)
The class would prefer to go on an excursion than stay at school.
FINAL POINTS
1. DON'T FORGET THE WOULD
These structures (especially would rather) is very common in everyday English. Almost any time we make plans with our friends or decide what to eat, this structure inevitably appears.
A: What do you feel like for dinner? Do you want to go out? B: Nah, I'd rather stay home and get a delivery.
No doubt you have heard or even used this yourself, but it is really easy to forget to say WOULD or the contraction 'D. Often, it's really easy not to hear it as well. That being said, it is absolutely necessary to include because it is part of the grammar structure. Without it, you may change the meaning, or it may be completely wrong. See the following point.
2. WOULD OR NOT?
So what happens when you omit WOULD?
If it's the WOULD RATHER or WOULD SOONER structure, then the sentence would completely wrong without the WOULD.
I'd rather you not told her about it. (= correct)
I rather you not told her about it. (= wrong)
If we are using the WOULD PREFER structure, then the meaning changes. Compare the following:
I would prefer to have Italian food tonight than Chinese. (= referring to a specific event happening now or in the future)
I prefer to have Italian food than Chinese. (= This is present simple used to talk about habits and routines, or what you do generally.)
3. PAST TENSE OR PRESENT TENSE
Sometimes it can be quite confusing to know when to use PAST SIMPLE or a BASE VERB (infinitive without to) with WOULD RATHER (and SOONER and PREFER). According to the above, we use PAST SIMPLE when the speaker expresses his preference about somebody else. And we use the BASE VERB when the speaker is talking about their own preference. More often than not, it's quite clear when there's only two people in the conversation (i.e. Roger and John in the example below).
Roger would rather John didn't eat with his mouth open.
Roger would rather have pizza tonight.
What happens when there are 3 or more participants or groups of participants in the conversation?
Let's have a look at a couple of examples.
Susan and John would rather stay out late on Friday than on Thursday. (= The speakers are talking about their own preference.)
Susan and John would rather Timmy didn't stay out so late every night. (= The speakers are talking about Timmy.)
Timmy would rather his parents didn't nag him so much. (= The speaker is talking about his parents.)
Timmy would rather he and his father played more football together. (= The speaker is talking about himself and his father. Because the subject of the preference contains a foreign person, we have to use a PAST TENSE.)
Timmy would rather play football together. (= The speaker is talking about himself.)
I hope that makes sense!
Remember that we often use the PAST TENSE to talk about hypothetical or imaginary situations in English. WISH, IT'S TIME and WOULD RATHER are three common structures that follow this idea. We will also see this concept used when we talk about CONDITIONAL grammar, so stay tuned for that!
It's time to call it a day!
(fixed expression to mean "stop what you are doing because you think you have done enough or do not want to do any more")