How to Use "Would" in English: A Detailed Explanation

13 Ways to Use "Would" in English

Level: pre-advanced (B2) / advanced (C1)

Watch the related video lesson here, and do the quiz that is attached to help you practice.

Quick Reference

• "Would" has numerous uses. It is usually understood as a verb which introduces a hypothetical or potential situation. It creates a mental distance between the present moment and the action. It can be used for:

• Polite offers - "Would you like...?"

• Polite requests - "Would you pass...?" / "Would you mind...?"

• Wants and Desires - "I would love to go with you." / "Would you like to go out tonight?"

• Preferences with "would rather" and "would prefer" - "I would rather you went alone." / "She'd rather stay home." / "What would you prefer?"

• Wishes - "I wish it would stop raining." / "I wish you would've told me sooner."

• Repeated past actions - "On Fridays, everyone would go to the pub after work."

• Repeated past actions with "always" and "never" - "My mom would always pack my lunch in the morning." / "He would always make fun of me."

• Present/Future hypotheticals - "If I had more time, I would..."

• Past hypotheticals - "I wouldn't have done that if I had known the consequences." / "He would have been a great choice!"

• "The future in the past": past expectations, intentions, and predictions - "I thought they would win." / "I was certain I would arrive on time." / "I was confident she would get the job."

• Reported speech for "will" - "You said you would call me."

• Polite suggestions - "I would suggest waiting in the lobby."

• Uncertainty or softness - "I would hope so." / "That would be difficult to say."

English Grammar: How to Use "Would"

Would is a versatile word. You are probably already familiar with some of its uses. For instance, when a person starts learning English, "would like" is one of the first phrases they encounter, usually to learn the difference between "like" and "would like." This is a natural starting point to learn about "would." But it is just the beginning.

So, in general, how do we use "would" in English? Here are some common things you have probably heard in a classroom or read somewhere:

"It's the past of will!"

"It's used for hypothetical situations!"

"It's the future in the past!"

While all of these things are true, only one of them gets close to capturing the overall essence of "would." In short, "would" is used to talk about things from a distance. In this way, it is usually used to describe hypotheticals. Another way to think about hypotheticals is that they are imagined or potential realities. For example, "I would like a soda." I don't have a soda now, but the potential for me to have a soda is there. I understand that I do not have a soda at the moment, and I am thinking about the possibility of soda from a distance--from a future that has not yet happened, but which has a possibility of happening.

You can think of "would" as a fence between the present and what could happen, could have happened, or did happen.

"Would": Looking at things from a distance

As mentioned, there is a distance--which you can think of as a barrier, such as a fence--between the speaker and the reality that is being talked about. With that in mind, let's review all of the various ways that you can use "would."

Before you read this list of uses, please note that there is overlap between some of the categories. This means that some examples could fit into more than one category. I have done my best to clarify and categorize things as clearly as possible. In truth, there are numerous "how to use would" resources on the internet, and all of them are varying degrees of "good" and accurate. However, since you're on the English with Alex website, you are going to get my perspective on things. If you think I have missed something, feel free to send me an email.

Here we go! (This means, "We are going to begin.")

1. Polite offers

You can make offers with "would." This is most commonly used with the phrase, "would like," but there are other options. Take a look at these examples:

"Would you like something to drink?"

"Would you care for some cake?"

"Would you prefer the blue one or the red one?"

"Where would you like to sit?"

"When would you like to leave?"

"What would you like for dessert?"

The last three sentences are examples of open offers. To clarify, "Where would you like to sit?" is an open offer because it has multiple options. You can choose one of many seats that are being offered in this case. This usage of "would" does overlap a bit with preference, but I have placed it here to illustrate that offers with "would" aren't just limited to "yes/no" questions.

2. Polite requests

While not as common as "could" offers, polite offers with "would" are possible. Take a look:

"Would you get my bag for me, please?"

"Would you pass me the salt?"

In both of these cases, "could" more commonly replaces "would" in requests, but "would" is possible if you would like to sound a little softer and less direct.

If you would like to sound even more polite, "would you mind" is the common phrase you're looking for. For example:

"Would you mind calling back later?"

"Would you mind if I drove?"

"Would you mind" is asking the other person if it would be inconvenient for them if you did something. Make sure you following "would you mind" with a verb+ing if you intend to refer to an action. For example, "Would you mind holding the door?" If you use "would you mind if," make sure to use the simple past form of the verb after the subject. For instance, "Would you mind if we left a little earlier?" or "Would you mind if I invited my brother?"

You can even ask about past "if" situations by saying, "Would you have minded." For example, "Would you have minded if I chose not to attend yesterday's meeting?" However, this is not a request. You can't make requests in the past. This is simply a past hypothetical situation that is asking about a person's past feelings and potential reactions to something.

Finally, if you are a grammar nerd, you might be saying, "Alex! Isn't that just the third conditional? Why aren't you using the past perfect in the if clause?" Great question. The truth is, in speaking, "Would you have minded if I chose not to attend yesterday's meeting?" is used just as much--if not more so--than "Would you have minded if I had chosen not to attend yesterday's meeting?" While the second example is the only one that is technically correct, the first one is used and accepted. Now you know. Let's move on.

3. Wants and desires

Instead of saying, "I want to buy those shoes," you can soften your words by saying, "I would like to buy those shoes." "Would" is often followed by "like" and "love" to indicate what a person wants or desires in the present or the future. Here are some examples:

"I would like a bit more sugar, please."

"I would love to hear from you."

In both cases, the subjects want something that they don't have at the moment. There is a distance between them and the objects of their desire. You can use other subjects to assume or state what someone else would like or love. For instance, "She would love to see you this weekend," or "They would like more information."

Tone and context are very important when distinguishing between a want and a desire. In short, if you desire something, you want it very badly. A desire is a more intense want, usually with some kind of emotional component or a strong wish for something. "Would love" is more common when expressing a desire. Read the following examples:

"I'd love a back massage right now. It has been a long day."

"He would love to quit his job, but he can't."

In the first case, the person really wants a back massage. In the second case, the person really wants to quit his job. Of course, in speaking, the way you say something has an effect on how the listener receives your intended meaning. In these cases, stressing the word "love" in "would love" makes the sentences more intense and emotional.

Finally, you can use "would hate" to make negative sentences, but it doesn't really express a desire. Instead, it expresses a negative attitude or feeling towards something. Here are two examples:

"I would hate to see you quit." (Meaning, I would feel bad if you quit your job.)

"She would hate that movie." (Meaning, I think she would not enjoy that movie. Her attitude toward the movie would be negative.)

"He would hate it if that restaurant closed." (Meaning, he would respond negatively if the restaurant closed.)

Got it? If not, you can always go back and read the information over again.

I know this is a lot of information, but I believe in you.

4. Preferences with "would prefer" and "would rather"

You can express a preference at the moment of speaking by using "would prefer" and "would rather." Just keep in mind that the structures are a bit different. Take a look:

"I would prefer coffee to tea." (This means I would like to have a cup of coffee instead of a cup of tea right now. In this case, the speaker had probably been offered tea or coffee before they spoke.)

"I would rather have coffee than tea." (The meaning is the same, but the structure is different. "Would rather" prefers "than" instead of "to" when making a comparison.)

In short, "would prefer" is usually followed by a noun, noun phrase, that clause, or a to-infinitive, while "would rather" is usually followed by an infinitive verb. In more formal sentences, it can also be followed by a "that" clause. Take a look at these two examples:

"I would rather you didn't do that," or "I would rather that you didn't do that." Both of these have the same meaning. Note that this structure uses the past simple for the verb which follows the subject "you."

By adding a brief conditional, you can also turn "would prefer" and "would rather" into general preferences instead of preferences at the moment of speaking. The magical clause for this is, "If given the choice" or "If given the option." For example, "If given the choice, I would prefer to drive a Toyota instead of a Ford." You can express that same idea with "would rather" just like this: "If given the option, I would rather drive a Toyota instead of a Ford." In these cases, the mental distance from the speaking topic is clear: I don't have a choice between a Toyota and a Ford right now, but if I had a choice, I would choose the Toyota. Just as an example, of course! What kind of car a person would prefer to drive is entirely a matter of personal choice (and finances!).

5. Wishes

You can make present wishes with "would," as well as past wishes. Let's take a closer look:

Present wish: "I wish it would stop raining." (would + infinitive verb)

Past wish: "I wish you would have told me that sooner." (would have + past participle)

In these cases, a wish with "would" expresses a strong desire for change. You can also make wishes without "would." Specifically, you can say, "I wish it wasn't raining," using the past simple for a present wish, or, "I wish you had told me that sooner," using the past perfect for a past wish. When you make a wish with "would," it's usually to talk about something that is or was annoying, but this is not always the case. For instance, you can say, "I wish you would apply for the promotion." In this example, the speaker really wants someone to apply for a promotion at work.

To put it briefly, you make wishes with "would" when you want to intensify the attitude of your wish--when you really want someone to do something, or for something to change. Here are two more examples before we move on:

Present wish: "He wishes you would call him more often."

Past wish: "My mom wishes I would've cleaned my room more often."

6. Repeated actions in the past

You can use "would" to talk about things that you or someone else did frequently in the past. Note the examples:

"In high school, I would wait until the last minute to do my homework."

"My dad and I would often go fishing on weekends."

"When she came home from school, she would have dinner and then she would play video games for an hour."

The final example is important because it shows that you can use "would" when you are describing a sequence of events. The question that most English learners ask here is "What is the difference between would and used to?" The short answer is that "used to" can be used to talk about past states, such as "I used to live in Minnesota," while "would" usually can't be used in this way, but that's a topic for another time. For now, you just need to know that you can use "would" to talk about repeated actions in the past.

7. Repeated past actions with "would always" and "would never"

In the category above, you might have noticed that I used an adverb of frequency in the second example, "My dad and I would often go fishing on weekends." Yes, you can use adverbs of frequency after "would," as in "would often," "would sometimes," "would usually," or "would rarely." Relevantly, two adverbs of frequency that are often used with "would" are "always" and "never." These are used to emphasize or exaggerate the frequency of a past repeated action. Here are some examples:

"She would never clean up after herself." (This means that when she made a mess, she never cleaned it up.)

"He would always complain about everything."

"I would always bring my lunch to school."

"When the company made a mistake, they would always lie to their employees."

"When we walked to school, you would always hold Mom's hand."

Usually, we use "would always" and "would never" to talk about negative repeated actions in the past, but as you can see, positive or neutral repeated actions are also possible.

8. Present/Future hypothetical situations (the second conditional)

The second conditional, also known as the present real or future real conditional, is a massive topic. For the purposes of this lesson, you just need to know that you can use "would" to talk about present and future possibilities, potential actions, or imaginary situations. When you use the second conditional, you are imagining something that has the potential of happening, or that might not be possible. Here are three sentences to illustrate this point:

"If you asked me to help you, I would do it." (In this case, you are imagining a scenario that is possible even though you are not in the scenario right now.)

"She would be great at that job." (This example shows how you don't always need an "if" clause to make a conditional sentence. the implied conditional is "If she had that job, she would be great at it," now or in the future.)

"If I could be any animal in the world, I would be a Greenland shark because they can live for over 400 years." (This situation is impossible. A human being can't transform into a shark. This is an example of an extreme hypothetical situation with the second conditional.)

As I've mentioned, the second conditional is a massive topic, and I encourage you to explore it on its own. For this lesson, you just need to know that "would" is often used with the second conditional.

"What would you do?" is a common hypothetical question when you're looking for advice.

9. Past hypothetical situations (the third conditional)

You can use "would" to talk about past hypothetical situations. In this case, you use the phrase "would have" plus a past participle in the result clause, and the past perfect in the "if" clause. This is also known as the third conditional. Here are three examples:

"He wouldn't have broken up with you if you hadn't cheated on him."

"If you had saved your money, you would have been able to pay for that car."

"I would have asked you to come if I had known you were interested."

Just like the second conditional, the "if" clause is sometimes optional. For instance, you could say, "You would've loved the concert!" In this case, the implied "if" clause is, "If you had come with us to the concert, you would have loved it."

10. The future in the past

Sometimes, we make predictions, we have expectations, or we have intentions that don't end up how we hope. When we talk about past predictions, expectations, and intentions that failed in the past, we can use "would." Here is how:

"I bet that they would win." (This means that in the past, I made a bet that a particular team would win a game. At that time in the past, maybe I said something like, "I bet they will win." This overlaps with reported speech and how "will" transforms into "would," which we will look at in a little bit.)

"I thought you would be there to support me." (In this case, you weren't there even though I had expected you to be there.)

"I knew you wouldn't let me down!" (This means that I expected you to do something for me and you did it. In the past, maybe I thought to myself, "I know he won't let me down.")

"She said she would give the speech after lunch." (Once again, this is a clear case of reported speech where "will" turns into "would" when you are reporting something from the past in the present.)

"You promised that you would fix the door." (Maybe the person had intended to fix the door, but for some reason, they failed to do this.)

It is also common to use adjectives with this structure. For example, I was sure, certain, confident, or positive that something would happen in the past. You can use negatives as well, as in, "I wasn't sure that he would believe me," or "I was skeptical that their actions would match their words."

11. Reported speech: The past of "will"

Yes, "would" can be understood as the past of "will," specifically when we are using reported speech. We have already seen this in category 10, but let's look at some more examples anyway:

"He asked me if I would go biking with him." (The direct question here was probably, "Will you go biking with me?")

"You told me you would be there at 9." (The direction sentence here was probably, "I will be there at 9.")

"They said the store would open at 10." (The direct sentence here was probably, "The store will open at 10.")

"I questioned whether they would keep their promise." (The direct question here was probably, "Will they keep their promise?" or maybe it was a statement, such as, "I question whether they will keep their promise.")

In all of these examples, we are reporting something in the present that happened in the past. When we report something that happened in the past, we usually need to "take a step back" in our speech. To take a step back with "will," we turn it into "would."

12. Polite suggestions

As you know, you can make polite requests and polite offers with "would." What about suggestions? Yes, you can make polite suggestions with "would." To do this, you usually use the phrases "would suggest," "would recommend," or "would advise." There are other structures, but these are some of the most common. This structure is common in professional settings, or between people who want to keep a distance between each other. Take a look at this dialogue between two co-workers:

A: My rent is due and I don't have enough money to pay it. I don't know what to do.

B: I know it's not my business, but I would suggest that you talk to your landlord to see if you can get an extension.

A: I've already done that.

B: Okay. In that case, I would advise you to contact someone in your family and ask them for help.

A: Maybe. My sister has money, but I would feel embarrassed asking her for help.

B: In that case, I would recommend getting over your embarrassment and calling her. She's family. I'm sure she'll help.

A: Maybe. Do you really think she'll lend me twenty dollars?

B: ...

Most people shouldn't feel embarrassed to ask a family member for twenty dollars if it's the difference between having a home or living on the street.

The most important thing to remember here is that "suggest" and "recommend" are typically followed by a gerund (a verb plus -ing) or a "that" clause, as in, "I would suggest leaving early," or "I would suggest that you leave early," and that "advise" is usually followed by an object plus a to-infinitive, as in "I would advise you to see a doctor." It can also be followed by a "that" clause, as in, "I would advise that you exercise at least three times a week," or a gerund, though this is lesson common, as in, "I would advise calling back tomorrow."

In all of these cases, the use of "would recommend," "would suggest," and "would advise" is more polite and less direct than "recommend," "suggest," and "advise" on their own.

13. Uncertainty or softness

Just like "would" can soften suggestions, it can soften other statements and questions as well. You can use phrases such as "would think," "would hope," "would seem," or "would be" plus an adjective to soften your words or to show uncertainty. The sentences, "I would hope so" and "I would think so" are quite common with this usage. Read this dialogue to see some examples of softening language and showing uncertainty.

A: Do you think my dad will like what I got him for his birthday?

B: I would think so. It's a very creative gift.

A: It cost a lot of money.

B: It would seem so. It's very big and colourful.

A: Can you come with me to give it to him?

B: I would imagine that your father wouldn't want me there. I would expect that he would want his son to give him his birthday gift.

A: Okay, but...you're sure he's going to like it?

B: I'm not sure, but I would hope so. I think he would be happy to get such a creative gift from his son.

A: Okay. Can I borrow your truck to transport it to his house? A bouncy castle won't fit in my car.

I would hope that his father likes bouncy castles.

And that's it! Now, you have a better sense of the many ways "would" is used in English. In conclusion, there is always a distance between the present and the past, present, or future that "would" is referring to. Now, would you please click this link to learn more about my English learning books? They are available in PDF, e-book, and paperback formats, and they are intended for independent English learners, as well as English teachers. Thank you for learning with me! Until next time, I wish you much success with your studies.