'I wish I were...' Spanish equivalent?

Question

Hey!

What is the exact Spanish translation of 'I wish I were in Spain.'?

I know in English you use the subjunctive but I am not sure if it is the same in Spanish because the subject is the same?

Can anyone help?!

And even better if you can explain the difference!

¡Muchas gracias!

Answer 1

When you use ojalá followed by the past subjunctive, it is the equivalent of saying that you wish you were.....verb. When you talk about location, you need to use estar. (with ojalá, que is optional)

Ojalá (que) estuviera en España. I wish I were in Spain.

Ah thanks for that, I'll correct it - lagartijaverde, Apr 24, 2010

Excellent.... - Carlos-F, Apr 24, 2010

Answer 2

Ojalá (que) estuviera en España JZl1 corrected it

"When you talk about location, you need to use estar"

Answer 3

I'd go with Deseo que yo estuviera en españa, the subject is the same but the tense changes so you'd use the imperfect subjunctive. I was confused about the whole spanish subjunctive thing for a while too. You might want to check out Pratice Makes Perfect: The Spanish Subjunctive Up Close by Eric Vogt, it was recommended to me and it really helps.

Answer 4

More common for this particular sentence is, Quisiera que estuviera en España.

Yes, the subjunctive must used in Spanish as well.

Answer 5

Yo Deseo fui en Espana