Would like

from English Grammar Today

We use would like or ’d like to say politely what we want, especially when making offers
and requests:

Would you like a biscuit with your coffee?

Can you order for Ellie? She’d like the Margarita pizza, please.

Verbs that follow would like are in the to-infinitive form:

Would you like to listen to that again?

I’d like to get a return ticket for tomorrow.

We use Do you like …? to ask about preferences in general. We don’t use Do you like
…?to make offers or requests.

Compare

Would you
Would you
Do you like rice? like some Do you like dancing?
like to dance?
rice?

asks about likes and offers some asks about likes and invites you to
dislikes in general rice dislikes in general dance

Would like to have + -ed form

We use would like to have + -ed form when talking about things in the past that we have
missed:

I’d like to have watched the football but I had to go out. (I wanted to watch the football,
but I didn’t.)

I’d like to

We can use I’d like to as a short answer to an offer or invitation:

A:
You must have dinner with us.

B:
Yes, I’d like to.

A:
Good. Is Sunday night any good?

See also:
 Hate, like, love and prefer
 Like

would like

singular plural
I would like ____ We would like _____
You would like ______ You would like _____
He would like_____

She would like _____ They would like _____

It would like _____

would like = want

The verb "would like" requires an object, a gerund, or an infinitive after it:
  I would like a bagel. (The word "bagel" is an object.)
 He'd like a new job. (The word "job" is an object. Notice that the subject and "would" are
contracted to form "He'd." This is very common.)
 They'd like a new dog. (The word "dog" is an object.)
 They'd like to get a new dog. ("To get" is an infinitive.)

Most people make a contraction with the subject and "would."

I would like a burrito = I'd like a burrito.

She would like to make a call. = She'd like to make a call.

Present Tense - negative

singular plural
I wouldn't like _____ We wouldn't like ____
You wouldn't like____ You wouldn't like ____
He wouldn't like ____

She wouldn't like ____ They wouldn't like ____

It wouldn't like ____

Remember: You must have an object after "would like."

You can also use a gerund after "would like."

 You wouldn't like living there. ("Living" is a gerund.)

 He probably wouldn't like the food.
 They wouldn't like doing that kind of work. ("Doing" is a gerund.)

Note: Using "would like" in the negative is not always an easy thing to do. This expresses an opinion
about a person that might not be true.
 ooooooooooooo
QUESTIONS:
These questions are made with "would like."
would like = do want

 What would you like on your pizza?

 Would you like to go out tonight?
 Would they like to go to the park?
 What time would you like to leave?
 How many pieces of chicken would you like?

Here are some examples:

 A: What would she like to do

some day?
 B: She'd like to become a
professional photographer

(She'd = She would)

 A: Would he like to improve

his English?
 B: Yes, he would. (or...)

 B: Yes, he would like that

very much.
  A: What would she like to do
today?
 B: She'd like to read some
books.

Watch this video:

‘’

magine that you are visiting a friend in Washington, D.C. Your friend takes
you to a popular restaurant. You look at the menu and decide what you
want: crab cakes. Your friend is taking a little longer to decide. So, when the
server comes to your table, your friend tells you to order first. You say:

Hi, I want the crab cakes, please.

Although you expressed your request clearly, it is best to avoid using “want”
when making polite requests. Instead, we use “would like.”

This is just one of many uses for the modal “would” in everyday speech. A
modal is a helping verb that is usually used with another verb to express ideas
such as possibility, necessity and permission.

Today, we will tell you some of the uses of “would.”

Polite requests & offers

Let’s return to polite requests. At restaurants and other places where we pay
for services, a common way to make a request is using “would like.” This
phrase means “to wish to have.”

Listen to the polite version of the food order:

Hi, I would like the crab cakes.

We also use “would like” in polite offers. When we do this, we use question
form. Here is how the server might respond:

Sounds good. Would you like anything else with that?

Yes, I’d like the side salad. Thanks.

Along with food orders at restaurants, you may also make a polite request for
someone to do something for you.

Listen to this line from a famous television ad for a fruit-based spread:

Would you (please) pass the jelly?

To many native English speakers, using “will” in such a request sounds

demanding rather than polite or neutral.

There are other polite ways to ask someone to do something. In an earlier

program, we told you about indirect questions. One of them includes
the phrase “Would you mind…?”

If we use this phrase, the jelly request becomes:

Would you mind passing the jelly?

Common “yes” responses to such a request include: “No, not at all” and
“Sure.”
Reported speech

Another everyday use of “would” is in reported speech. We use reported

speech to tell others what someone else said – without using their exact words.
In reported speech clauses, “would” is the past tense of “will.”

First, listen to “will” in direct speech:

“I will bring the drinks,” Anita said.

When we change this to reported speech, we change “will” to “would”:

Anita said (that) she would bring the drinks.

Another example of changing tenses in reported speech is when talking about

the weather. Imagine that you are listening to a weather report on the radio.
The reporter might say:

It will be sunny in the morning, but we can expect rain in the afternoon.

Here is how you might tell someone else about what you heard:

The weather report said (that) it would be sunny this morning but rainy this
afternoon.

Imaginary situations

Another everyday usage of “would” is in unreal conditionals. These

conditionals describe what we would do in imaginary -- or unreal -- situations.

You may remember from an earlier program that unreal conditional

statements have two parts: the if-clause and the main clause. The word
“would” goes in the main clause. Here’s an example:

I would move to Japan if I spoke Japanese.

In this statement, the main clause comes before the if-clause. But, the order of
the clauses does not change the statement’s meaning. You could also say, “If I
spoke Japanese, I would move to Japan.”

Sometimes, in casual, spoken English, we leave out the if-clause in unreal

conditional statements, but its meaning is understood. One situation when we
do this is when giving advice:

How are you getting to Boston?

We’re flying out on Friday.

Nice! I would arrive two hours before departure. The DC airport is usually
crowded on Fridays.

The understood meaning is “If I were you, I would arrive two hours before
departure.”

Past unreal conditionals also contain “would.” But they are more complex and
require a strong understanding of present and past perfect verb tenses. You
can read more about these conditionals in an earlier episode of Everyday
Grammar.

Repeated past actions

Let’s move to something a bit simpler. We also use “would” in everyday speech
to talk about repeated actions in the past. This usage is called “past habitual.”
Here’s an example:

When I was little, I would play hopscotch with my friends.

There are two rules for this usage. The first is that we must state the time
period in the first part of the sentence -- “When I was little” for example.
Second, we only use “would” this way with action verbs, such as “play” in the
hopscotch example. We do not use it with stative verbs, such as: live, be,
know, think, understand or want.
We could not, for example, say, “When I was little, I would be happy playing
hopscotch.”

Well, we’ve given you a lot of information. Would you like to practice now?

Join us again soon to learn about more ways we use “would.”

I’m Alice Bryant.

Alice Bryant wrote this story for Learning English. Ashley Thompson was
the editor.

You can practice in the Comments section below. Make sentences with
“would” by doing at least three of the following:

Tell someone what you want

Make a polite offer to someone
Ask someone to do something
Tell us what someone else said
Tell us about a repeated past action

Uses of ‘Would’ Example Structure

Polite for “want” I would like the crab cakes. Subject + would like + object

Polite offer Would you like some rice or Would you like + object
a salad with it?

Asking someone to do something Would you (please) pass the Would you + simple verb form +
jelly? direct object

Would you (please) pass me Would you + simple verb form +

the jelly? indirect object + direct object

Asking someone to do something Would you mindpassing the Would you mind + gerund + object
 jelly?

Reported speech Anita said that she Subject + said + (that) + noun
would bring the drinks. clause

Present unreal conditionals I would move to Japan if I Main clause= would + simple verb
(imaginary situations) spoke Japanese. form

If-clause= if + subject + simple

past verb

Repeated past actions When I was little, Main clause= would + simple verb
I would play hopscotch with form
my friends.

_______________________________________________

Grammar rules for would like

“I would like” is followed by an infinitive verb or a noun.

“I would like to book a double room for Saturday.” (infinitive verb “to book”.)

“I would like a single room for Saturday.” (noun “a single room”.)

Because “would” is a modal verb, it doesn’t change for he / she “third-person singular”.
I would like
You would like
He / she would like
We would like
They would like

There is no “s” on he / she / it.

You can abbreviate the “would” to ‘d:

I’d like
You’d like
He’d like
She’d like
We’d like
They’d like

Don’t abbreviate from “would” to “‘d” in the question or negative forms.

“I wouldn’t like” (not “I’dn’t like”.)

To form the negative, add “not” or the abbreviation “n’t” to “would”:

I would not like / I wouldn’t like

You would not like / You wouldn’t like
He / she would not like / He wouldn’t like
We would not like / We wouldn’t like
They would not like / They wouldn’t like

To form the question, change the subject-verb word order to verb-subject:

Would I like…?
Would you like …?
Would he / she like …?
Would we like …?
Would they like …?

The short reply is

Yes, I / you / he / she / we /they would.
No, I / you / he / she / we / they wouldn’t.

Other ways to be polite in English

It’s important to be polite when you speak to English people. Here are some ways you
can do this:

Say “good morning”, “good afternoon”, “hello” etc before you ask for something

“Good morning! I’d like to buy a return ticket to London, please.”

“Hello! Can I get a coffee and a Danish to go, please?”

Use polite words like “please”, “thank you” and “excuse me”

Always see “please” when you ask for something. Put “please” at the end.
“Can you tell me the way to the Post Office, please?”

Say “thank you” when someone does something for you. (You can also say “thanks”.)

“Hello, I’d like to buy a first-class stamp, please.”

“Here you are.”
“Thank you.”

Say “excuse me” as a sort of introduction before you ask for something or speak to
someone.

“Excuse me, does this train stop at Reading?”

“Excuse me, do you know what platform the London train goes from?”

For more information on politeness, see our page Being friendly in English.

Would like Exercise

Choose the correct answer.

1. I __ buy a ticket.

 want buy
 would like
 would like to

2. He would __ book a double room.

 a
 like to
 to

3. __ to reserve a table?

 Would you
 Would you like
 You would

4. She __ like a bigger house.

  not
 would
 woulds

5. I'd __ order a taxi.

 like
 like to
 to

6. You __ like that film.

 'dn't
 'd not to
 wouldn't

7. __ to order dessert?

 Would you
 Would you like
 You like

8. Yes, I __

 like
 would
 would like

9. __ he like a book for his birthday?

 -
 Does
 Would

10. No, he __

 doesn't
  not
 wouldn't

. to express a polite offer or request:

Would you like tea?
Would you like me to do it?
2.to describe a habitual past action:
Every evening I would walk in the garden.
3.used in speaking of something that will, may or might happen(eg. if a certain condition is
met):
If I asked him to the party, would he come?
4.used to express a preference, opinoin etc politely:
I would do it this way.
5. used, said with emphasis, to express annoyance:
I've lost my car-keys-that would happen!
Hope that help you.