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Bookmark or Share- "Wasn't" vs "weren't" - English Language & Usage Stack ExchangeThe fact that you wish something was or wasn't true means you should use the indicative. You are stating that something is factually one way or another, and wishing for the situation to be reversed. So "I wish it wasn't raining today" and "I wish it was raining today" are how to express those concepts.
- Difference between "couldn't" and "wasn't able to"Since negative form 'couldn't' can cover all situations (specific or general) you might hear it more. Couldn't can be used instead of wasn't able to. When you hear people saying wasn't able to, I am sure they are talking about something specific they couldn't/ wasn't able to do. Like, I wasn't able to do my homework yesterday.
- contractions - Use of wasn't vs was not in a formal sentence - English ...That use of "wasn't" sounds fine to me. What sounds a bit questionable is the idea that one could tell whether a person is blind just by looking at them. Also, "bespectacled" doesn't prompt one to think of sunglasses, so the subsequent mention of opacity immediately forces the reader to revise the mental picture that was forming.
- Wasn't vs. Weren't - English Language & Usage Stack ExchangeThe person saying it should be wasn't cited this for support: "The use of were and weren't in the subordinate clauses depends on the reality or truthfulness of the subordinate clause. If it is true, then the indicative forms was and wasn't are in order. If it is not true i.e. counterfactual, then the past subjunctive forms were and weren't are ...
- What's the difference between "wasn't" and "hadn't"?A's use of "wasn't" probably falls under the Simple Past designation. "The baby wasn't sleeping all night" — you might come across this sentence in a book when the narrator talks about a year when insomnia was a bodily habit of the baby. But it's not specific about the time in which this took place.
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