conditionals

Conditional Sentences Type I

happen.

Present / Future.

It is possible that it will

If you (go) _______ out with your friends tonight, I (watch) _____________ the
football match on TV.
I (earn) ________ a lot of money if I (get)________ that job.
If she (hurry / not)___________ , we (miss) ___________ the bus.
Conditional Sentences Type II
Past simple / would + infinitive
don't believe it is going to happen.

You

If he (try)__________ harder, he (reach)_____________ his goals.

I (buy)___________ these shoes if they (fit)_____________ .
It (surprise / not) ___________ me if he (know / not)____________ the answer.
Conditional Sentences Type III

Past perfect / Would + Present perfect

A past event that didn't happen and what the cosequences would have been
if the event had happened.
If we (listen) ______________ to the radio, we (hear) ________________ the news.
If you (switch)____________ on the lights, you (fall / not) ____________ over the
chair.
She (come) ______________ to our party if she (be / not)________________ on
holiday.
Conditional Sentences Type I, II or III
If I (be) ______________ stronger, I'd help you carry the piano.
If we'd seen you, we (stop) ________________ .
If we (see) ________________- him tomorrow, we'll say hello.
He would have repaired the car himself if he (have) _______________ the
tools.

If you drop the vase, it (break) _________________ .

If I hadn't studied, I (pass) _______________ the exam.
I wouldn't go to school by bus if I (have)_______________ a driving licence.
If she (see/not) ________________ him every day, she'd be lovesick.
I (travel/not) _______________ to London if I don't get a cheap flight.
We'd be stupid if we (tell)______________ him about our secret.

The conditionals and when we use them.

The Zero conditional is used when something is always true. It is telling us
that IF you do something then the consequence is this.
The zero conditional is If + present simple / present simple.
if it's hot, people go to the beach. (general statement that is always true)
Both of these are always true. I am speaking in general.Look at the use of the
coma. A coma is needed if the first part is the IF clause, but not if the If
clause is placed second. The coma rule is the same for all the conditionals.

The first conditional is a possible future actions and the consequence of the
action. You aren't certain that it will happen , but you believe that it is very
likely and you know what the conseqence of the event happening will be.
If + present simple / will+ infinitive
If it is hot, I will go to the beach. ( I'm not sure, but I think I will probably go
later and only if it's hot!)
The second conditional is an event in the future that you don't believe will
happen. Although it is an event in the future, the if clause uses thepast tense.
The consequence uses the conditional modal 'would'. This is because the
consequence could only of happened if the action had happened. But as the
action is not really possible the cosequence is only a condition

If + Past simple / would + infinitive

If it was hot, I would go to the beach. ( but it isn't hot, it's cold so I will not go
today)
The third conditional is used to talk about past actions that definitely didn't
happen. The second clause tells of what the consequence would have been if
the action had happened.
If + past perfect (had+past participle) / would + present perfect
(have/has+past participle)
If it had been hot, I would have gone to the beach. (yesterday it was cold not
hot so I didn't go to the beach)
Using modals in conditionals: can, could, may, might, must and should +
infinitive. These are not used in the if clause. They are always used in the
consequence clause.
1st: If you have a toothache, you should see the dentist straight away. (Giving
advice)
1st: If you are absent from class, you must call me at home. (Giving an order)
1st: If its dry, we should go camping. (Making a suggestion)
1st: If it stops raining, we can go out. (Expressing ability)
1st: If you finish your dinner, you can have some ice cream. (Giving
permission)
1st: If you finish your dinner, you may have some ice cream. (Giving
permission)
1st: If you work harder, you may pass the exam. (Expressing possibility)
1st: If you work harder, you might/could pass the exam. (Expressing
possibility)
2nd: If you worked harder, you might/could pass the exam. (Expressing
possibility)
2nd: If I knew her number, I could ring her up. (Expressing ability)
3rd: If I had known her number, I could/might have rung her up. (Expressing
possibility)
3rd: If you had worked harder, you might/could have passed the exam.
(Expressing possibility)

Sometimes 1st conditional = If + present continuous + simple future.

When? If you are referring to something happening right now. (More often in
conversation)
If you are looking for Peter, you will find him upstairs.
If you are staying for lunch, I will go to the bakery.
If I am talking too much, will you please let me know?
If they are arriving tomorrow, I will take the day off work.

Sometimes 1st conditional = If + present perfect + simple future

When? If you are referring to something which has very recently been
completed.
If you have finished dinner, I will ask the waiter for the bill.
If you have done your homework, I will mark it now.
If they have lost their books, they will have to see the librarian.

Sometimes 2nd conditional = If = simple past = simple past.

When? When we refer to habitual (routine) actions in the past.
If there was a problem, he always sorted it out..
When she was interrupted, she got very annoyed.
When I was young, if you talked in class, the teacher told you off.

Sometimes 2nd conditional = If + past continuous = would/could & bare

infinitive
When? When we refer to a situation which continues for an extended period.
If we were going by train, I would feel much happier.
Note: You could stick to the basic rule e.g. If I went by train, I would feel much
happier.

If my car was working, I would/could drive you to the airport.

If I was living in Melbourne, I would have a better job.
If my car worked, I would/could drive you to the airport
If I lived in Melbourne, I would have a better job.

when you use the Second Conditional you can write: If I were.., If he
were.., If she were.., If it were
This makes the sentence more formal that using "was"
If I were rich, I would be very happy.
If I were you, Id see a dentist.
If he were to resign, I would get his job.
If Jill were here, we would know what to do.
If it were fine, we could go for a walk.