CONDITIONALS GRAMMAR

Zero conditional: If + subject + present + comma + present

We use the zero conditional to talk about facts or general beliefs.

e.g. If you heat water, it boils.

If you eat healthily, you live longer.

First (1^st) conditional: If/when + subject + present + comma + will + verb

We use the first conditional to speak about likely events.

e.g. If I go shopping, I will buy some new trainers.

Word order change

e.g. If I go shopping, I will buy some new trainers.

I will buy some new trainers if I go shopping. NO COMMA

Change will (won´t, may, can)

e.g. If I go shopping, I will buy some new trainers.

If I go shopping, I can buy some new trainers.

*When = instead of if e.g. When you finish work, you can call me.

*Unless e.g. I can´t call you unless you finish work.

Second (2^nd) conditional: If + subject + past + comma + would + verb

We use the second conditional to speak about unlikely or impossible events

e.g. If I had $100,000, I would buy a new car.

Word order change

e.g. If I had $100,000, I would buy a new car.

I would buy a new car if I had $100,000 NO COMMA

Change would (wouldn´t, might, could)

e.g. If I had $100,000, I would buy a new car.

If I had $100,000, I could buy a new car.

Third (3^RD) conditional: If + subject + past perfect + modal perfect

We use the 3^rd conditional for a hypothetical past.

e.g. If I had saved more money last year, I would have gone to Bali on holiday.

Word order change:

If I had saved more money last year, I would have gone to Bali on holiday.

I would have gone to Bali on holiday if I had saved more money last year. NO COMMA

Change would for (could, might):

e.g. If I had saved more money last year, I would have gone to Bali on holiday.

e.g. If I had saved more money last year, I could have gone to Bali on holiday.

Mixed conditionals:

All conditionals have a condition “If I have time,…” and a result “… I will do some exercise”. But these conditions can be both present or past. What a mixed conditional does is mix the 2nd and 3rd conditional to express this.

Study these examples:

If I had a mobile phone, I would have called you last week. The meaning of this sentence is simple. I didn´t call you last week because I don´t have a mobile phone at the moment.

The condition: “If I had a mobile phone” is in the present so we use the 2nd conditional whereas the the result “I would have called you” is in the past so we use the 3rd conditional.

If I had studied more at university, I would earn more money now. The meaning of this sentence is that I was a bad student and I didn´t study in the past and now I earn little money.

The Condition Is in the past “If I had studied more” so we use the 3rd conditional but the result “I would earn more money” is in the present so we use the 2nd conditional.