“If I am to pick a favourite” or “If I were to pick a favourite”

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I will try to keep it short and simple.

How do you answer the question if this was asked as a question in person – “What is your favorite song?”
I want to say I have many but if I had to select one, it will be Numb by Linkin Park.

So what is the best way to say this?

I have many favourite songs.

  1. If I am to select one, it would be Numb by LP
  2. If I were to select one, it would be Numb by LP

Answer

“If I were” is correct because you are talking about hypotheticals. “If I was” is incorrect unless you are making conditional (“if A is true, then B must be true”) statements.

If I was at the bank at 4 PM on Friday, then I could not have been the man you saw at the supermarket at 4 PM on Friday. You must be mistaken.

If the package we sent in the mail last week arrives today, then we will get an e-mail notification at 4:30 PM today.

If I were to become rich… then I would buy a Lamborghini.

I hope this shows the difference.

“If I had to pick one” is just another way of saying “If I were coerced into picking one”. Hypothetical scenarios use a verb form identical to the past tense of the verb except that we use “were” instead of “was”.

Context makes the meaning obvious, but if your intent was to find out which one is correct, then you know now.

Attribution
Source : Link , Question Author : Coolxamith , Answer Author : Jonathan Joseph Chiarella

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