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I am perplexed at this sentence:

If I was asked who I wanted to become, I could not give a specific answer

Is it correct, or should I instead say

If I were asked who I wanted to become, I could not give a specific answer

asghar
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1 Answers1

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In the examples you provided was and were can be used interchangeably both denoting present unreal or hypothetical action. Were has been traditionally used in this kind of sentences while was is a new trend. This kind of sentences are called second conditional sentences.

Turkan Alisoy
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  • Actually, no. The first sentence can be denoting past action, too. But the second can't. Since the OP didn't specify what in point of fact took place when, the question is unanswerable. – RegDwigнt Aug 03 '15 at 15:36
  • Both sentences denote something which hasn't happened but wished to be asked by a speaker. The past of it is expressed by Third Conditionals like: If I had been asked, I couldn't have given a specific answer. – Turkan Alisoy Aug 03 '15 at 15:37