0

Is it correct to say "I wished I had learnt something somehow"|| Is there a better way to say it in few words ?? (After much practicing I felt I was not getting good at a skill, so, in my childhood days I wished I could become skillful, sure, I did not want to skip the process but was sometimes frustrated so to speak)

Timeline: childhood days, wishing for the future; which was not a reality in the then present time.

I want to express a feeling that I had in the past. And in that point in time, I had a strong desire to learn a skill but was in the process of learning.

Context We all know learning a skill takes time and perseverance. But we sometimes become impatient as the process of becoming a pro from novice is time consuming. Hence, we start wishing "Somehow I be as good as xyz(pro)" etc.

Any help in this regard is highly appreciated.

Improve this question
6
  • 1
    If your parents had recorded a video of you when you were a child expressing this thought what would you be saying? “I wish I could already play the piano.” “I wish I already knew how to play.”
    – Jim
    Feb 3, 2019 at 0:36
  • Wow, glad that you came up with a good illustration and a nice way to express this thought. You are right, I would construct my sentence that way. However, my question is, how will I explain this whole experience to someone else without using direct speech, For example, in the above case, My parents recorded a video, and in that video, --->I expressed how I wished I could play the piano? <--.....it sounds better than....I wished I had learnt piano somehow (doesn't sound good to my ears).. modal auxiliary "could" made the difference.....Is this the solution to my problem?
    – yeppe
    Feb 3, 2019 at 5:22
  • 1
    Exactly. I first wanted to make sure I understood what you wanted to say and I figured it would be easier to do that in present tense. Then we can put it in the past: “I wished I already knew how to play.” “ I wished I could already play”
    – Jim
    Feb 3, 2019 at 5:26
  • Could you post this as an answer I would be glad to mark this thread as close! Thanks for everything.
    – yeppe
    Feb 3, 2019 at 5:28
  • 1
    It’s ok, not my preference. The ’somehow’ is ambiguous. I would say, “I wished that somehow I had already learned to play.”
    – Jim
    Feb 3, 2019 at 5:38

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
0

Copying the answer from the comments section (credit goes to Jim)!

It’s ok, not my preference. The ’somehow’ is ambiguous. I would say, “I wished that somehow I had already learned to play.”

Improve this answer

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge that you have read and understand our privacy policy and code of conduct.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.