～ばよかった JLPT N3

〜ba yokatta

Express a sense of regret; 'I wish', 'it would have been better if'.

Formation

Verb-ば-form + よかった, い-Adjective-く + ばよかった, な-Adjective + ならよかった

Explanation

The ～ばよかった grammar point is used to express a sense of regret or to convey that one wishes something had been done differently. It can be translated as 'I wish' or 'it would have been better if' in English. The formation differs depending on whether it is used with a verb, い-adjective, or な-adjective.

Example sentences

もっと早く起きればよかった。

I wish I had woken up earlier.

Motto hayaku okireba yokatta.
昨日のパーティーに行けばよかった。

I wish I had gone to yesterday's party.

Kinou no paatii ni ikeba yokatta.
もっと安いものを買えばよかった。

I wish I had bought something cheaper.

Motto yasui mono wo kaeba yokatta.
あの時、もっと勉強すればよかった。

I wish I had studied more at that time.

Ano toki, motto benkyou sureba yokatta.