Learn English – Why “I would like to” instead of “I will like to”

speechwill-would

After trying to explain to my friend that he was misusing "I will like to" in place of "I would like to" and showing him this answer (I apologize for asking again), he still argues he is correct. He argues he is correct regardless of my "American" english despite me explaining that "will" implies, you can, and WILL DEFINITELY do something. I lack the knowledge to properly counter his argument:

I would have loved to do that(past)

I will love to do ( future )

Best Answer

You're correct. One of the dictionary meanings of would is:

  1. Expressing a desire or inclination.
    ‘I would love to work in America’
    ‘would you like some water?’

The desire is happening now, so we use the present tense of the verb, even though it refers to an activity that may take place in the future.

will is used for an action that will actually take place in the future, rather than just a desire to do so. E.g.

I will make love to her tonight.

or

I will love doing that.

The latter expresses the idea that when you're performing the activity in the future you'll enjoy it, but says nothing explicitly about your current opinion (although we can probably infer things).

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