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Speaker 1: Man, I screwed up. I shouldn't have done that. I mean,

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I wish I had thought about it more ahead of time.

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I mean, man, if only I had done it when

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I was gonna do it.

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Speaker 2: Oh brother, Welcome to another Happy English podcast, coming to

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you from New York City. And here's your English teacher, Michael.

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Speaker 1: Alright, thank you John, and thanks everyone. It's Michael here

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from Happy English and I help people speak English better.

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This is Happy English Podcast Episode nine ten. How to

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use should, wish, and if only to express regret in English.

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Thanks for tuning in. Hey, let me ask you a question.

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Have you ever done something or made a decision then

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later thought, oh, man, I shouldn't have done that, Or

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maybe you've thought if only I had done it differently? Yeah, that,

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my friend is regret, and we all feel it sometimes.

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Regret is one of those universal emotions, something that everyone experiences,

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and in English we've got a few really natural and

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emotional ways to talk about it. So today I'll show

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you how to use phrases like I should have, I

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wish I had, if only I had, plus some everyday

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casual expressions people use when they mess up. First, up,

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we have I should have and I shouldn't have. This

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is probably the most common way we express regret in English.

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It's great when you want to say you made a

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mistake or missed a chance, like the other day, I

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had a meeting early in the morning, but I stayed

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up late watching Netflix. And yeah, the next morning I

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said I should have gone to bed earlier. That's to

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regret right there. By the way, in everyday casual conversation

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we pronounce should have, as should have or shouldn't have,

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like I should have studied more, or I shouldn't have

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said that. That's very native and very natural. Or sometimes

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we say things like I shouldn't have eaten at pizza,

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or we should have checked the weather before going to

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the beach. You can even say this about other people.

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He shouldn't have spoken to her like that. The next

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set is I wish I had and I wish wish

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I hadn't. These are a little more emotional than should have.

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We tend to use I wish I had and I

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wish I hadn't when we feel sorry about something in

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the past, like when I was younger, I had the

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chance to study abroad, but I didn't, And honestly, to

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this day, I still say I wish I had taken

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that opportunity. We also use this when we say or

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do something we regret, like I wish I hadn't said

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that to her, or I wish I had saved more

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money when I was younger. Yeah, you can say that again.

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The third set is if only I had and if

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only I hadn't. This one's really dramatic, like something you'd

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hear in a movie or read in a novel. If

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only I had means I really regret this and I

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feel strongly about it. Let's say you forget to bring

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your umbrella and you get soaked, you might say if

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only I had checked the weather, Or after a breakup,

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when the romance is over, you might say something like

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if only I hadn't said that, or if only I

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had told her how I really felt. This kind of

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language shows deep emotion, and this phrase feels deeper than

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the others because we often say it with a sigh,

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like Ah, if only I hadn't broken up with her,

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my life would have been totally different. Yeah, but that

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was thirty years ago, Michael. Yeah, if only I had

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and if only I hadn't. These are perfect for storytelling

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or when you really want to express your feelings by

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the way. We also have some lighter, casual ways to

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talk about regret. Sometimes we don't use full grammar to

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show regret. We just talk casually, like you can use

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blow it or the past tense, which is blew it.

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When you blew it, you made a big mistake, like man,

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I blew it, I totally forgot that yesterday was Jenny's birthday,

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or like when a job interview doesn't go well and

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you didn't land the job, I totally blew that interview.

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Other casual phrases are I messed up and I screwed up.

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These mean the same thing, you made a mistake and

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you feel bad about it, like ah, I messed up

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my presentation, I forgot half of what I wanted to say,

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or I really screwed up by not backing up my

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files before my computer crashed. Both of these are super

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common in casual speech. Not rude, but definitely informal. And

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here's one more that started being used pretty recently in English,

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my bad. This one's even more relaxed. It's like saying sorry,

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that was my mistake. Like if you send someone the

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wrong file, you can just say, oh, sorry, my bad, quick, casual,

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and used all the time. So yeah, when it comes

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to regret, we've got a full range from serious phrases

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like I should have and I wish I hadn't to

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these quick, easy, and casual ones like I blew it,

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I messed up up, and my bad. Just pick the

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one that fits how you feel and who you're talking to.

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So let's recap. I should have and I shouldn't have

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are great for simple regrets like I shouldn't have drunk

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so much last night, I wish I had and I

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wish I hadn't. Are more emotional and personal like I

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wish I hadn't argued with her If only I had

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is dramatic good for storytelling or serious feelings? Ah yeah,

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if only I hadn't broken up with her? And casual

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phrases like I blew it, I messed up, or I

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screwed up sound natural in everyday English. So here's your challenge.

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Think about a little regret that you've had recently, like

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maybe you didn't study enough, or maybe you missed a

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fun of or you bought something that you didn't need.

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Try putting that idea into English using one of these

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regret expressions. Like I shouldn't have bought that, or I

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wish I hadn't done that. Say it out loud, feel

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the rhythm and use it in your conversations this week.

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And hey, if you want to practice this English with

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me and a group of other awesome learners, come check

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out my podcast Learner's Study Group. We meet once a

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week and practice the language from these podcast lessons together.

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It's a great way to build confidence and improve your speaking.

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Just check the link where you are listening to this

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podcast right now, or Visitmhappy English dot com and choose

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podcast episode nine to ten for more info. Thanks for listening,

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and remember learning in other language is not easy, but

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it's not impossible, and I'm here to help you on

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your journey.

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Speaker 2: This podcast is brought to you by Happy English. Please

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visit Myhappy English dot com show your support for Happy

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English by leading us a review. Get English, Get Happy,

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Happy English.