We wanted to be there. vs We wish we were there.

Both phrases are correct, but they express different ideas. 'We wanted to be there' refers to a desire or intention to be at a certain place in the past. 'We wish we were there' refers to adesire to be at a certain place in the present.

Explained by Michele A.
Editor at TextRanch

Last updated: August 10, 2024 • 34080 views

This phrase is correct and commonly used to express a desire or intention to be at a certain place in the past.

"We wanted to be there."

This phrase is used to convey a past desire or intention to be at a specific location.

Examples:

We wanted to be there for the concert last night.
They wanted to be there for the wedding ceremony.
She wanted to be there for her friend's birthday party.

Show examples from the web [+]
Last updated: November 28, 2024

Mar 10, 2024 ... We wanted to be there, but we were out of town. The Village Corner German Restaurant and Bakery profile picture · The Village Corner German ...
Sep 23, 2020 ... And we wanted to be there for our fans, especially with an album called Unconquered. I think we made the right decision because, in the end ...
Jun 28, 2024 ... We were shocked, and we wanted to be there for her daughter and her family. But it can be hard to know how to respond to the grief of others ...
Sep 19, 2024 ... We've never done October before as wanted to as we wanted to be there for Halloween. On 9/10/2024 Rachel from LA Asked: We'll be at WDW AK ...
This is one of the reasons that we wanted to be there for and with Lauren. A little later, when we started to work with the bridesmaids, we noticed a ...
Sep 14, 2024 ... We've never done October before as wanted to as we wanted to be there for Halloween.” Hi there, Laura Frances! Thanks for stopping back by ...
Mar 28, 2016 ... ... we wanted to be there for him. In his final days id put on movies for us to listen to like we did every weekend since I was a child. On his ...
When we started our Airbnb business, the goal was to build a life of freedom for us and our future family. We wanted to be there to see our kids grow up.
Jun 18, 2013 ... We wanted to be there in order to demonstrate that the perpetrators of this hostile act were not representative of the local community, that ...
... We wanted to be there to see our kids grow up. We wanted to be able to travel anywhere we wanted, whenever we wanted with our family. We wanted to raise a ...

Alternatives:

We desired to be there.
We aimed to be there.
We hoped to be there.
We intended to be there.

This phrase is correct and commonly used to express a longing or desire to be at a certain place in the present.

"We wish we were there."

This phrase is used to express a current desire or longing to be at a specific location.

Examples:

We wish we were there to see the sunset.
I wish I were there to celebrate with you.
They wish they were there to support their friend.

Show examples from the web [+]
Last updated: October 30, 2024

Dec 11, 2022 ... We Wish We Were There. For the first twenty-plus years of our life together, the Christmas holidays involved kids, extended family and ...
Oct 14, 2024 ... 1 hr. Erik Pridemore. We wish we were there, but we have to be at home in Oklahoma for our own New Years Eve Event. Cheers to you both ...
Staying Connected… We Wish We Were There… In Person… by Diane Schuessler | Oct 20, 2020 | KINDLE News. One of our favorite ...
Sep 20, 2024 ... We wish we were there with you for your Wine and Jazz New Year's Eve in San Diego, but we are going to be at home to celebrate the Holidays ...
Sep 11, 2023 ... "We wish we were there to help out physically," said Laila Mounia Alaoui, whose family back in Morocco survived the quake but had their home ...
Jul 3, 2019 ... We spent a little less than 24 hours in Barcelona, Spain two weeks ago and all we can say is that we wish we were there just a little longer.
May 23, 2022 ... Wish you were there? We wish we were there. Photo. Dan Mullins. Have there been any particularly ...
Mar 24, 2021 ... ... we wish we were there with you. Wish we could have more time with Uncle Pat. He was a good man and we enjoyed getting to spend time and ...
Dec 21, 2013 ... ---- ITRAT: SAFE TRAVELS TO PAKISTAN -- ----PLEASE SEND PHOTOS ---- We wish we were there with you! Šąbå Çhãůďhry and 44 others. 󰤥 45. 󰤦 8.
Oct 29, 2015 ... We have nothing but good things to say, and we wish we were there longer. Carly Ng and Tyler Wentzell on Safari in South Africa. Carly ...

Alternatives:

We long to be there.
We desire to be there.
We dream of being there.
We yearn to be there.

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We wanted to be there. vs We wish we were there.

"We wanted to be there."

"We wish we were there."

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