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In the following sentences, should "didn’t happen" or "hadn't happened" be used?

Sales have gone down, and obviously we’d prefer it if that didn’t happen / hadn't happened.

Sales have gone down, and obviously we wish that didn’t happen / hadn't happened.

I thought "hadn't happened" is correct because the sentences are about counterfactual past scenarios. However, the Longman Dictionary uses "didn't happen" in the first sentence. Is it an error or an examlpe of language change?

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Both verb forms are fine. It depends on the intended meaning. Sales went down in the past, but...

1: ...we’d prefer it if that didn’t happen in the future
OR
2: ...we’d prefer it if that hadn’t happened in the past

So #1 looks forward optimistically, hoping the future will be different to the past, whereas #2 looks back regretfully, wishing the past had been different.

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    We'd prefer it if that didn't happen could also mean if that didn't happen often (if it were not the usual state of affairs).
    – Kate Bunting
    Commented Jan 14, 2023 at 14:05
  • But surely even if we weaken the aversion (negated preference) so we don't mind it happening sometimes, using didn't ALWAYS means we're talking about an unwanted potential future (and hadn't always refers to the unwanted actual past).
    – FumbleFingers
    Commented Jan 14, 2023 at 14:37
  • I didn't exactly mean we don't mind it happening sometimes, but we'd prefer it not to be a habitual occurrence. There seems to me to be a difference, though it's not easy to explain it.
    – Kate Bunting
    Commented Jan 14, 2023 at 15:08
  • We'd rather it hadn't been habitual in the past, OR we'd rather it didn't become habitual in the future. The same have/do = past/future distinction applies even if there's no explicit if- clause potentially referencing a "counterfactual" (to use OP's terminology).
    – FumbleFingers
    Commented Jan 14, 2023 at 15:32
  • Is this OK? "Sales went down, and obviously we’d prefer it if that hadn't happened."
    – Apollyon
    Commented Jan 15, 2023 at 4:01

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