What Is a Wish About the Past?
We use wish + past perfect to talk about regrets — things that happened, or didn't happen, in the past that we want to be different now. The situation is already finished and can't be changed.
Subject + wish(es) + had + past participle — regret about something that didn't happen
Subject + wish(es) + hadn't + past participle — regret about something that did happen
I wish I had studied harder for the exam.
She wishes she hadn't sold her bike.
Wish vs Reality
Every wish about the past describes the opposite of what actually happened.
I wish I had brought a jacket.
→ Reality: I didn't bring a jacket, and I was cold.
She wishes she hadn't quit her job.
→ Reality: She quit her job, and now she regrets it.
We wish we had left earlier.
→ Reality: We left late and missed something.
Positive and Negative Forms
Regret about NOT doing something: wish + had + past participle
I wish I had asked for help.
Regret about DOING something: wish + hadn't + past participle
I wish I hadn't said that.
Common Mistakes
⚠ Watch out:
✗ I wish I would have studied harder. → ✓ I wish I had studied harder. (never use would have for a past regret)
✗ She wish she hadn't said that. → ✓ She wishes she hadn't said that. (use wishes with he / she / it)
✗ I wish I have asked for directions. → ✓ I wish I had asked for directions. (always had, never have, even with a present-tense subject)