Unreal Past – Expressing Regret, Criticism and Imaginary Situations

In this lesson, you will learn how to talk about unreal or imaginary situations using past forms. These structures are very common in B2/FCE exams and help you sound natural and confident.

What is the Unreal Past?

The Unreal Past is not a tense. It is a group of structures where we use past verb forms to talk about situations that are not real.

• regrets
• imaginary situations
• criticism or complaints
• preferences and wishes

1. It’s high time

We use It’s high time to say that something should have happened earlier. It often expresses criticism.

• It’s high time you started studying seriously.
• It’s high time we left.

2. I wish

We use I wish to express regret or to say that we want a situation to be different.

3. As if / As though

We use as if / as though to describe how something seems, especially when it is not true.

4. I’d rather

We use I’d rather to say what we prefer other people to do.

• I’d rather you didn’t say that.

5. If only

If only is similar to I wish, but it is stronger and more emotional. We often use it to show strong regret or frustration.

6. Second Conditional (Conditional 2)

We use the second conditional to talk about imaginary or unreal situations in the present or future and their results.

• If I had more time, I would study abroad.
• If she were more confident, she would speak more.

Interactive Practice

Summary

Unreal Past structures and the second conditional help you talk about imaginary situations, regrets and criticism. They are essential for B2/FCE grammar tasks.