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I just want to ask you guys about the general meaning of expressions that use the following pattern in colloquial American English:

If + subject + was/were + infinitive, ...

Examples: (Written by native American Speakers)

  1. If I was to make a booking, which rooms are the closest to the pool?
  2. If I was to say what I am, I'd be a Labor man.
  3. If you were to buy the iPhone 8 plus, will you be able to get it activated through Boost?
  4. What would happen to a cactus if it was to be planted in a rainforest?

And here is what I think it means: It’s a way to express a condition that didn't happen, and it could also be used to express a condition that is likely to happen in the future as in the first example.

Is that right, do Americans use the expression often? Please, correct me if I'm wrong.

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CryptoBird
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  • Are you aware of the underlying periphrastic construction that uses an inflection of the verb be followed by an infinitive as another way of saying will/would/should or be going to? If you are not, then we should probably explain the construction itself to you outside of its conditional use. On the other hand, if you *do* know that construction but just don’t know how it’s used in conditionals, you might see this related answer. – tchrist Feb 11 '18 at 00:44
  • Thanks @tchrist for your corrections, but I've seen the this related answer before submitting my question . What I wanna know exactly what this pattern used to express. By the way, the pattern is a result of looking up various phrases on the web. – CryptoBird Feb 11 '18 at 01:12
  • I mean, I didn't find it in a book or something, I made it myself. – CryptoBird Feb 11 '18 at 01:14
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    Note that #4 is wrong, because it speaks of an effect occurring before its cause. – Ben Voigt Feb 11 '18 at 04:17
  • Thanks @BenVoigt so, should it be : What would happen to a cactus if it was planted in a rainforest? Is that correct ? – CryptoBird Feb 11 '18 at 11:17
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    @CryptoBird: That works, and here are two more variations: What will happen to a cactus if it is planted in a rainforest? (factual) and "What would happen to a cactus if it were planted in a rainforest?" (subjunctive counter-factural). And these versions of the clause can be used with both: when it is planted in a rainforest and after it is planted in a rainforest – Ben Voigt Feb 11 '18 at 21:13
  • @BenVoigt: That was very helpful, thanks a million. – CryptoBird Feb 11 '18 at 21:42

2 Answers2

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The subjunctive mood is used to describe a situation that is hypothetical or imaginary. The most common way to spot the subjunctive is when a sentence starts with if. In all your examples, you would use were instead of was.

If I were rich, I would buy a big house.

If that were so, things would be very different.

It's also used for wishes, advice, and commands:

Wish

I wish I were taller.

I wish he were nicer to me.

Advice or Command

I advise that he discuss this with his wife.

It is important that he be ready to leave in the morning.

I insisted that she go to school.

I demand that he refund my money.

David DeMar
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  • Thanks @David DeMar so, "If + subject + was/were + infinitive" has no thing to do with the subjunctive mood. – CryptoBird Feb 11 '18 at 00:30
  • But, do Americans use this pattern "If + subject + was/were + infinitive" often ? – CryptoBird Feb 11 '18 at 00:33
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    *I am to guess* that it's actually the basic underlying “be + infinitive“ periphrastic construction itself — irrespective of its real or unreal uses — that is unknown here. – tchrist Feb 11 '18 at 00:47
  • Thanks @tchrist for your corrections, but I've seen the this related answer before submitting my question . What I wanna know exactly what this pattern used to express. By the way, the pattern is a result of looking up various phrases on the web. – CryptoBird Feb 11 '18 at 01:26
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    @CryptoBird: The likely explanation is that your examples are written by people who don't know the subjunctive, and don't care enough about grammar to be interested in learning it – Ben Voigt Feb 11 '18 at 04:13
  • @BenVoigt: I think you're right, even thought these examples are written by native American speakers. – CryptoBird Feb 11 '18 at 18:13
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Thanks to @tchrist, I'm convinced that this is just a “be + infinitive“ periphrastic construction.

In this case, The construction "If + subject + was/were + infinitive" is used to talk about precondition, in other words, in order for something to happen, something must be done beforehand.

Resources:

http://dualtexts.com/english/grammar-bank/83-to-be-done

"It is to be discussed", what is the infinitive doing in this sentence?

http://www.grammaring.com/be-to-infinitive

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