Learn English – Can you “wish somebody congratulations”

phrase-usage

Is the construction “wish somebody congratulations” common at all?
I thought you could wish somebody good luck etc., or you could congratulate them.

Then I read president-elect Trump tweet

The President of Taiwan CALLED ME today to wish me congratulations on winning the Presidency.

Best Answer

Simply, no it is not common, paticularly in relation to the more idiomatic phrase give congratulations.

As Google Ngrams shows, historically, give is far more common, although it has become less popular recently.

Wish has gone up in popularity over the last half-century but is still below give.

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