Everyday English · CEFR B1 · Independent
I'd prefer / I'd rather — Everyday english
Three ways to say the same thing, each demanding a different shape after it. This is the group people mix most.
The shape
I'd rather + plain verb · I'd prefer to + verb · I prefer + -ing
Say what you would rather do, politely.
In Hindi
एक ही बात कहने के तीन तरीक़े, और तीनों के बाद अलग रूप आता है।
CoCap explains every structure in both languages, because a rule you understand in Hindi is a rule you can use in English.
The mistake to fix first
The sentence Indian-English speakers actually produce, and the reason it is wrong.
| Commonly said | Correct English |
|---|---|
I'd rather to stay at home. | I'd rather stay at home. "Would rather" takes a plain verb — it is "would prefer" that takes "to". |
Easy to confuse with
Close enough to be mixed up with this one. Knowing the difference is most of knowing either.
- would ratherB1Say which of two things you prefer, right now
- prefer / rather thanB1Say which of two things you like more
Questions people ask
- What is the i'd prefer / i'd rather used for?
- Three ways to say the same thing, each demanding a different shape after it. This is the group people mix most. In practice: say what you would rather do, politely.
- How do you form the i'd prefer / i'd rather?
- I'd rather + plain verb · I'd prefer to + verb · I prefer + -ing.
- What is the most common mistake with the i'd prefer / i'd rather?
- Saying “I'd rather to stay at home.” instead of “I'd rather stay at home.”. "Would rather" takes a plain verb — it is "would prefer" that takes "to".
Where i'd prefer / i'd rather fits
Where this structure sits in the ladder, and what surrounds it.
I'd prefer / I'd rather is a CEFR B1 structure — the independent band — and it belongs to everyday english. CoCap’s syllabus files every structure this way so you can learn in order instead of jumping between whatever a search happened to return.
Reading it is not the same as saying it.
CoCap turns this page into practice: Hindi sentence in, English sentence out, corrected one thing at a time. Free, no card.
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