[Grammar] I'd rather we

[Checkmate]

"I'd rather we use/used

Does "we" mean myself or someone else? I don't know which one should I say because of this.

 

[Raymott]

No, 'we' means me AND someone else. But I don't see how that should make a difference to the tense used.

 

[Checkmate]

No, 'we' means me AND someone else. But I don't see how that should make a difference to the tense used.

I don't know, there's a rule says we have to use present tense after "I'd rather" when it's about what I do but we have to use past tense to show what we want someone else does

 

[Matthew Wai]

we have to use past tense to show what we want someone else does

It should be the past subjunctive referring to an unreal or improbable situation, according to http://www.grammaring.com/past-subjunctive

Not a teacher.

 

[TheParser]

***** NOT A TEACHER *****


Hello, Checkmate:

Michael Swan's popular Practical English Usage seems to have a SOMEWHAT similar "rule."


1. "Would you rather stay here or go home?"

a. Mr. Swan says that we use the base form (the infinitive without "to") when we want "would rather" to mean "WOULD PREFER TO."

i. As you can see, the subject does NOT have to be "I."

b Here's another example of his:

i. "How about a drink?" " I'd rather have something to eat."

*****


2. "I'd rather you went home now."

a. Mr. Swan says that we usually use the past when one person PREFERS ONE OR MORE PERSONS TO DO SOMETHING.

b. He says that sometimes people use the present: "I'd rather you go home," but that is "unusual."

c. Some of his other examples:

i. "I'd rather you came next weekend."
ii. "My wife would rather we didn't see each other any more." [American English: "anymore."]

*****

Here is some information from Grammar in Use by Raymond Murphy. He agrees with Mr. Swan:

3. I'd rather cook dinner now.

4. I'd rather you cooked dinner now.


I do not want to give you any wrong ideas, so I shall not comment directly on your question. I think that you can now choose the correct answer.



James

 

[Matthew Wai]

i. "I'd rather you came next weekend."

If the grammar site I quoted is correct, will it imply that the person being addressed does not intend to come?

Not a teacher.

 

[TheParser]

***** NOT A TEACHER *****


Hello, Mr. Wai:

While you and I are waiting for an answer to your excellent question, I stumbled across some information that may interest you.


He acts as if he knew you.
Imagine your child played truant.
I'd rather we had dinner now.

Four scholars explain that in such sentences, "generally a negative [my emphasis] inference can be drawn."


But they then point out that "I'd rather we had dinner now," the hypothetical past "may express tentative politeness [my emphasis] rather than hypothetical meaning."



James



Source: Quirk, Greenbaum, Leech, and Svartvik, A Comprehensive Grammar of the English Language (1985 edition), page 1011.

 

[Matthew Wai]

But they then point out that "I'd rather we had dinner now," the hypothetical past "may express tentative politeness [my emphasis] rather than hypothetical meaning."

May it also express that the person being addressed is not minded to have dinner right now and the speaker reminds him/her politely?

Not a teacher.