Which is correct?

Question

One: He wished he had been a girl.
Two: He wished he were a girl.

Note: He is still alive.

Answer 1

As I understand it, he is still alive, but he's now happy to be male.

That makes One correct, because the fact of being a girl was already not true in the past when he was wishing it. "He were" is the non-past subjunctive; you'd use it with "He wishes he were a girl."

Answer 2

2

Answer 3

One is correct if had wished it in the past and it is not currently his wish. You would have to change it to say "he wishes that he had been born female" or something like that for it to be true now. But if he is wishing that he is a girl now, two is correct because it requires the use of the subjunctive mood. The subjunctive is used to express wishes or desires, or things that are not actual. The subjunctive is still alive and well, even though by some of the answers you have received it is obvious that it is not recognized by everyone. It would be a little more obvious if you has the word "if" in it, because more people (but not all) will recognize it then. "If" clauses pretty much always use the subjunctive, because it is the expression of something that is not factual. If he were a girl, he would be happy. If I were rich, I would buy you a car.

Answer 4

He once wished to have been a girl.
That's probably better, provided he no longer wishes to have been a girl.

But the second option is also correct, but fails to imply a timeframe for the action. He could only just have wished he were a girl; he could have wished he were a girl twenty-six years ago.

Regardless, the usage of 'were' is correct, despite the plural/singular argument:
R L Trask states that "when the subordinator 'if' introduces a counterfactual clause (a clause representing something which is not true) then in formal writing the verb form 'were' is required, not 'was'."

Answer 5

First, it's apparent that several people here have not a clue what the SUBJUNCTIVE is. Folks, "were" here is NOT a plural nor is it a past tense form. It is a special form called the "subjunctive" used when talking about something "contrary to fact". Both "wished HE WERE" and "wished he HAD BEEN" are subjunctive forms, and both are grammatically correct constructions.

(I guess they never heard the song "If I were a rich man" or had someone drop them a note "wishing you were here!")

To the question:

BOTH of these statements are about something that happened in the PAST, since the main verb in both cases is the simple past indicative "wished." Thus it really doesn't help us much to know that he is still alive.

The difference between the two wishes is this:

#2 uses the form of the subjunctive that speaks of something that takes place at the SAME TIME as the action of the MAIN verb. (It is called the "past subjunctive" form only because it uses a form of the verb that LOOKS like a past tense.). So in this case, it means that at the point in the past when he had this wish, he wanted to be a girl RIGHT THEN.

#1 uses the subjunctive form ("pluperfect subjunctive" or "past perfect subjunctive") used to refer to wishes about the the time BEFORE the point in time when he had that wish.

(Incidentally, statement #1 by itself tells us NOTHING about his wishes FOR that time -- he might STILL wish he were a girl... or not. The sentence says nothing about it.... though the notion of someone's having the combined wish to 'have been' a girl AND to NOT BE one is a bit odd.)

Answer 6

Either one is fine. (although the first one sounds like his feelings of wanting to be a girl were only intended for a certain time period in the past, while the 2nd one sounds more like he just wished he was a girl in the past)

Answer 7

Assuming he wishes to be a female permanently, the second is correct. However, it should read "He wished he was a girl". 'Were' is used for plural nouns (I was, he was, we were, they were). The only exception being 'you' (you were).

If only everyone on this site showed interest in proper grammar!

Answer 8

Two : He wished he were a girl. BECAUSE if he is still alive....then that would cancel out number one....number one is past tense and number two is present...

Answer 9

One is correct. Two should be "He wished he was a girl."

Answer 10

That depends on the context:-

One: He wished he had been a girl. - He wished he had been a girl in the past.

Two: He wished he were a girl. - He wished he was a girl now - in the present.