Drukt een wens of spijt uit over iets dat niet echt is: Had ik maar, kon ik, wist ik.",

(Expresses a wish or regret about something that is not real: Had ik maar, kon ik, wist ik.)

1. When do you use Had ik maar… / the past tense for wishes and regrets?

  • To talk about a wish that is not true now.
    Was het maar vakantie. – I wish it were holiday now (but it isn’t).
  • To talk about regret about the past.
    Hadden we maar gewacht. – We regret that we did not wait.
  • The situation is always unreal / imaginary at this moment.
  • In Dutch we often use the word maar in these sentences. It is similar to “if only” in English.

Think: If you would say in English “If only I… / I wish I…”, in Dutch you will very often use the simple past with maar.

2. The 3 most common patterns

Function Pattern in Dutch Short English meaning
Wish about now Was het maar + …
Was het maar droog.		 If only it were …
Wish about what you have / can Had ik maar + noun / adjective / infinitive phrase
Had ik maar meer tijd.		 If only I had …
Regret about past action Had ik maar + voltooid deelwoord (past participle)
Had ik maar gespaard.		 If only I had done …

You can also use other verbs in the past: Kon ik maar… (If only I could…), At ik maar… (If only I ate…), Hadden we maar… (If only we had…).

3. Word order: where do had / was / kon and maar go?

These sentences often start with the verb, because they are like a question form, but with a wish meaning.

  • Correct pattern:
    Had + subject + maar + rest
    → Had ik maar meer geld.
  • Also correct (slightly different style):
    Had ik maar + rest + , dan + result
    → Had ik maar meer geld, dan kon ik mijn huur betalen.

Very important: maar stands immediately after the subject (or after the verb+subject block at the start).

  • Had ik maar meer tijd. ✔
  • Had ik meer tijd maar. ✘ (maar too late)
  • Had ik meer tijd maar om… ✘

4. Which tense after Had ik maar…? (big source of mistakes)

Many learners want to continue in the present. In Dutch, you usually switch to a past form to show it is unreal.

  1. Wish about now or future → simple past

    • Kon ik maar beter Nederlands spreken.
      = I wish I could speak Dutch better (now).
    • Was het maar vrijdag.
      = I wish it were Friday.

  2. Regret about the past → past perfect idea

    • Had ik maar meer gespaard.
      = I wish I had saved more.
    • Hadden we maar gewacht.
      = I wish we had waited.

So:

  • Now / future unreal → was / had / kon / at etc. (simple past).
  • Past regret → had / hadden + past participle.

5. Building blocks: swap from “real” to “wish” form

Take a normal sentence and convert it to a wish or regret step by step.

  1. Wish about something you do not have

    • Real: Ik heb geen auto.
    • Wish: Had ik maar een auto.

  2. Wish about something that is not true now

    • Real: Het is koud.
    • Wish: Was het maar warm.

  3. Regret about a past action

    • Real: Ik heb niet geluisterd.
    • Regret: Had ik maar beter geluisterd.

You can use the same trick for more complex sentences:

  • Real: Ik spaar niet veel, daarom kan ik geen huis kopen.
  • Wish: Spaarde ik maar meer, dan kon ik een huis kopen.

6. Typical verbs you will see

Verb (past) Meaning in this structure Example
had had Had ik maar meer tijd.
was was / were Was het maar rustig op mijn werk.
kon could Kon ik maar thuiswerken.
moest had to Moest ik maar niet zo veel overwerken.
at ate At ik maar gezonder.

Notice: the form is just the normal simple past of the verb. The “wish” meaning comes from the combination with maar and the context, not from a special tense.

7. Frequent mistakes to avoid

  • 1. Using present instead of past
    • Wist ik maar hoe ik veilig online kan betalen. ✘
    • ✔ Wist ik maar hoe ik veilig online kon betalen.
  • 2. Wrong place for maar
    • Had ik meer tijd maar om te studeren. ✘
    • ✔ Had ik maar meer tijd om te studeren.
  • 3. Forgetting the past participle in regrets
    • Hadden we maar eerder controleren. ✘
    • ✔ Hadden we maar eerder gecontroleerd.
  • 4. Mixing wish and real statement without comma
    • Better: Had ik maar een auto, dan hoefde ik niet met de bus.
    • The comma helps to see: part 1 = wish, part 2 = result.

8. Mini checklists (self-check)

A. Is this a good Dutch wish / regret sentence?

  1. Do you start with a past verb (had / was / kon / at / hadden)?
  2. Is the subject directly after the verb? (Had ik / Hadden we / Was het)
  3. Is maar directly after the subject? (Had ik maar…)
  4. For a regret about the past:
    • Do you use had / hadden + past participle? (Had ik maar geluisterd.)
  5. For a wish about now:
    • Do you use a simple past form? (Kon ik maar… / Was het maar…)

B. Can you connect a result?

  • Try adding a dan-clause to see if the sentence feels natural:
  • Had ik maar meer geld, dan was ik niet zo gestrest.
  • Was het maar weekend, dan kon ik uitrusten.

If such a “then-part” feels logical, your wish/regret form is probably correct.

9. What you should now be able to do

  • Recognise when Dutch uses the simple past to talk about an unreal wish or regret.
  • Form correct sentences with Had ik maar… / Hadden we maar… / Was het maar… / Kon ik maar….
  • Choose the right structure for:
    • wish about now: simple past (kon, was, had).
    • regret about the past: had / hadden + past participle.
  • Place maar in the correct position in the sentence.

If you can do this, you are ready to use these forms actively in conversation and focus in class on speaking practice, not on the rules.

  1. Use the onvoltooid verleden tijd (simple past) to express regret or an unfulfilled wish.
  2. The situation is imaginary or not realistic at this moment.
  3. It often goes together with 'maar.
Situatie (Situation)Voorbeelden (Examples)
Wens (Wish)Was het al maar zomervakantie. (If only it were already the summer holidays.)
Had ik maar meer geld, dan kon ik mijn huur betalen.  (If only I had more money, then I could pay my rent.)
At ik maar wat gezonder, dan was ik slanker. (If only I ate a bit more healthily, then I would be slimmer.)
Spijt (Regret)Hadden we maar gewacht. (If only we had waited.)
Had ik maar meer gespaard. (If only I had saved more.)
Had ik maar beter geluisterd. (If only I had listened better.)

Exercise 1: Multiple choice

Instruction: Choose the correct answer

1. ___ ik maar meer gespaard, dan kon ik nu makkelijk een huis kopen.

___ I had saved more, I could easily buy a house now.)

2. ___ het maar volgende week, dan stond mijn salaris al op mijn bankrekening.

___ it were next week, my salary would already be in my bank account.)

3. ___ ik maar genoeg contant geld bij me, dan hoefde ik nu niet met mijn creditcard te betalen.

___ I had enough cash with me, I wouldn't have to pay with my credit card now.)

4. ___ ik maar alle Nederlandse betaalapps goed gebruiken, dan was online betalen veel makkelijker.

___ I could use all the Dutch payment apps well, paying online would be much easier.)

Exercise 2: Multiple Choice

Instruction: Choose the correct sentence in which a wish or regret is expressed using the past tense and 'maar' (if only).

1.
'But' ('maar') is incorrectly placed; it must come directly after 'If only I had' for a correct wish construction.
Infinitive used instead of past tense after 'maar' (if only). The correct form is 'to manage' (te regelen in Dutch).
2.
The verb form 'was' is incorrectly used here for expressing a wish with past tense in this context.
Incorrect use of present tense 'can' instead of past tense to express a wish.

Exercise 3: Rewrite the phrases

Instruction: Rewrite the sentences so that they express a wish or regret using ‘Had I only …’, ‘If only we had …’ or ‘If only …’ Use the past simple tense. Example: I have no time. → Had I only more time.

Show/Hide translation Show/Hide hints
  1. Hint Hint (Had ik maar) Ik heb geen geld voor de huur.
    ⇒ _______________________________________________ Example
    Had ik maar genoeg geld voor de huur.
    (Had ik maar genoeg geld voor de huur.)
  2. Hint Hint (Was het maar) Het regent vandaag en ik moet werken.
    ⇒ _______________________________________________ Example
    Was het maar mooi weer en was ik maar vrij.
    (Was het maar mooi weer en was ik maar vrij.)
  3. Hint Hint (Had ik maar) Ik leer nu weinig Nederlands en dat is niet goed voor mijn examen.
    ⇒ _______________________________________________ Example
    Had ik maar meer Nederlands geleerd, dan zou mijn examen makkelijker geweest zijn.
    (Had ik maar meer Nederlands geleerd; dan zou mijn examen makkelijker zijn geweest.)
  4. Hint Hint (Hadden we maar) We besloten meteen te verhuizen en dat was geen goed idee.
    ⇒ _______________________________________________ Example
    Hadden we maar niet meteen verhuisd.
    (Hadden we maar niet meteen verhuisd.)

Exercise 4: Grammar in action

Instruction: Tell what went wrong and what wish or regret you have about it.

Show/Hide translation
Situation
Je staat bij de bankbalie omdat er iets misging met een betaling.
(You are at the bank counter because something went wrong with a payment.)
Discuss
  • Wat is er precies misgegaan met uw bankrekening of betaling? (What exactly went wrong with your bank account or payment?)
  • Wat had u liever anders gedaan of gewild bij deze betaling? (Gebruik: Had ik maar… / Waren ze maar…)​ (What would you have preferred to be different or what would you have wanted in this payment? (Use: If only I had… / If only they had…))
Useful words and phrases
  • de bankrekening (the bank account)
  • de betaling (the payment)
  • de pinpas / contant betalen (the debit card / paying in cash)
Use in conversation
  • Had ik maar… (If only I had…)
  • Was het maar… (If only it were…)

Written by

This content has been designed and reviewed by the coLanguage pedagogical team: About coLanguage

Profile Picture

Kato De Paepe

Business and languages

KdG University of Applied Sciences and Arts Antwerp

University_Logo

Last Updated:

Thursday, 05/03/2026 12:15