English, baby!

EXPRESSING PREFERENCES (prefer, would prefer, would rather)

Date: Oct 10 2008

Author: nad1a

Lesson

Expressing Preferences

We often use words like prefer, would prefer, would rather to talk or ask about preferences.
"I prefer living on my own."
"Would you prefer to see a movie or go to a club?"
"Would you rather go shopping with me?"

Those expressions are quite different in meaning and this is why learners of English often find them challenging. So here is how we can separate them:

Difference in meaning:

We tend to use 'prefer' to talk generally about likes, dislikes, what we want.
“He prefers reading books.”
“I prefer going to the beach than going to a swimming pool.”

The expressions 'would prefer' and 'would rather', to be a little more specific.
“I would prefer to see him in person.”
“I would rather go home now.”

Difference in form:

Followed by a different verb form:

“I prefer living in a city.” (followed by the gerund; the '-ing' ending)
“I would prefer to be told the truth.” (followed by the infinitive; to+ the verb)
“Would you rather stay at a hotel?” (followed by the base form of the verb; the verb without 'to'.

Different prepositions to state the choice.

prefer, would prefer – go with 'to'
“I'd prefer living in a city to living in the country.”
“I would (I'd) prefer being alone to being with the wrong person”.

would rather – goes with 'than'
“I would (I'd) rather talk to him in person than call him on the phone.”

***

1. You can check your understanding as you match the questions below with suitable endings:
Would you prefer ...?
Would you rather ....?

- taking a nap or going for a walk
- a trip to Jamaica or a cruise to Alaska
- watch a talk show or see a movie
- to stay at home or go outside with friends

2. Practice asking and answering questions of the same type with friends.

More Language Activities