I Wish / If Only Exercises – Fill in the Blanks (With Answers)

I Wish / If Only Exercises – Fill in the Blanks (With Answers)

Practice your English with these fill-in-the-blank exercises using I wish and If only. These exercises focus on verb forms and tenses for talking about wishes, regrets, and complaints.

If you prefer multiple-choice exercises, try our I Wish / If Only Exercises – Multiple Choice and Sentence Transformation for extra practice.

Complete the exercises below and check your answers at the end to improve your accuracy in writing and speaking.

📄 Teacher Resource:
Looking for a printable version of these exercises? Download our I Wish & If Only Worksheet (PDF) with 50 grammar practice questions, gap fills, transformations, and answer key.
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Quick Review – Using I Wish / If Only (Verb Forms)

  • Present wishes (unreal now) → past simple
    • Example: I wish I were taller.
  • Regrets about the past → past perfect
    • Example: If only I had studied harder.
  • Complaints about others → would + base verb
    • Example: I wish you would stop shouting.

These exercises focus on choosing the correct verb form to match the meaning.

I Wish / If Only Exercises (Verb Form & Gap Fill)

Please, do the exercises below on wish and regret, then click the button to check your answers.

(Before doing the exercises, you may want to read the lesson on wish and regret )

Exercise 1 – Verb Forms with I wish/If Only

Exercise – Choose the Correct Verb Form

  1. I wish I to him yesterday.
  2. I need help badly. If only you help me.
  3. My old car often breaks down. I wish I a new car.
  4. He didn't pass the exam. If only he hard.
  5. She was absent. I wish she the conference.
  6. What a beautiful house! I wish I a house like this one.
  7. I wish I rich. I would buy a farm and enjoy the calm of the countryside.
  8. They had that bad accident because they were careless. If only they more careful.
  9. We saw the film. I wish you it with us. It was an amazing evening.
  10. I like traveling around the world. If only I time to realize my dream.

Exercise 2 – Gap Fill

Complete each sentence using the correct form of the verb in brackets. All sentences start with I wish or If only.

  1. I wish I ______ (know) how to drive a car.
  2. If only she ______ (arrive) earlier to the meeting.
  3. He wishes he ______ (not/miss) the train yesterday.
  4. I wish we ______ (have) more time to finish the project.
  5. If only they ______ (listen) to the instructions carefully.
  6. She wishes she ______ (speak) Spanish fluently.
  7. I wish you ______ (stop) making that noise.
  8. If only I ______ (study) harder for the exam last week.
  9. We wish we ______ (go) to Paris last summer.
  10. I wish it ______ (be) warmer today.
  11. If only he ______ (tell) me the truth earlier.
  12. I wish I ______ (not/eat) so much chocolate yesterday.
  13. She wishes she ______ (can) attend the conference next month.
  14. If only they ______ (not/forget) to book the tickets.
  15. I wish he ______ (come) to the party tonight.
  16. If only I ______ (have) more courage to speak in public.
  17. He wishes he ______ (be) taller.
  18. I wish we ______ (take) more photos during our last vacation.
  19. If only she ______ (not/lose) her keys this morning.
  20. I wish it ______ (stop) raining so we could go out.
1. knew
2. had arrived
3. hadn’t missed
4. had
5. had listened
6. could speak
7. would stop
8. had studied
9. had gone
10. were
11. had told
12. hadn’t eaten
13. could
14. hadn’t forgotten
15. would come
16. had
17. were
18. had taken
19. hadn’t lost
20. would stop

⭐Classroom Worksheet Available
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Tags: Exercises on Language Structures and Usage
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