Conditional Conditional SentencesSentences

by JFBSby JFBS

First Type: Possible & Probable conditions

Second Type: Possible & Improbable conditions

Third Type: Impossible conditions

Conditional Types

Other Conditional sentences

Wish / If only

First Type: Possible & Probable conditions

IF CLAUSE MAIN CLAUSE

Simple Present Simple FutureImperative

Can

If you come I will be happy

If you want to pass Study!

If we buy a ticket We ___________ (go) to the concert

If she ______________ (arrive) soon

she will come with us

If they dance too much They ____________ (get) tired

If you need my car ________________ (take) it

First Type: Possible & Probable conditions

IF CLAUSE MAIN CLAUSE

If you ________ (drink) a lot I ________ (leave) you

If the road________ (be) wet ________(watch out) !

If he________ (lose) his key You ________ (lend) him yours

If she ________ (not buy) any food

We ________ (have dinner)

If they ________ (not stop) talking

We ________ (not finish) our lesson

If you ________ (take) the dog for a walk

I ________ (give) you some money

Second Type: Possible & Improbable conditions

IF CLAUSE MAIN CLAUSE

Simple Past Would + root verbCould + root verb

If she studied she would pass her tests

If he ran he would catch the bus

If I went to China I could be with him

If I were _____________ _________________

To express an imaginary present or improbable future situations

IF CLAUSE MAIN CLAUSE

If you ________ (drink) a lot I ________ (leave) you

If the road ________ (be) wet You________have) an accident

If he________ (lose) his key You________ (lend) him yours

If she ________ (not buy) any food

We ________.(have dinner)

If they ________ (not stop) talking

We ________ (not finish) our lesson

If you________ (take) the dog for a walk

I ________ (give) you some money

Second Type: Possible & Improbable conditions

Third Type: Impossible conditionsTo express a regret for an impossible situation

happened in the Past with NO solutionIF CLAUSEIF CLAUSE MAIN CLAUSE

Past PerfectPast Perfect Present Perfect Conditional(Would have + past

participle)If it hadn't rained We would have gone to the

countryIf she had studied She __________ (pass) her

testsIf you __________ (invite)

themThey 'd have come to the

partyIf I had known it I ___________(arrive) earlier

If he____________(phone) I 'd have seen him

IF CLAUSE MAIN CLAUSE

If you ________ (drink) a lot I ________ (leave) you

If the road ________ (be) wet You ________(have) an accident

If he ________ (lose) his key You ________ (lend) him yours

If she ________ (not buy) any food

We________(have dinner)

If they ________ (not stop) talking

We ________ (not finish) our lesson

If you________ (take) the dog for a walk

I ________ (give) you some money

Third Type: Impossible conditions

  UNLESS " Si no…" "A menos que..."

You won't finish the race unless you pace yourself.

WHETHER…OR NOT "Tanto….como si no "

Whether you pay or not, you won't get in without an invitation.

ON CONDITION THATPROVIDED THATPROVIDING THAT SO LONG AS AS LONG AS "Siempre que, en tanto que, con la condición de que,...etc ASSUMING THATSUPPOSING THAT SUPPOSE THAT "Suponiendo que.."  

"I will only tell my age on the condition that you tell yours." “I will only tell my age provided that you tell yours”“I will only tell my age providing that you tell yours”“I will only tell my age so long as you tell yours”  “I will only tell my age as long as you tell yours”

 "Assuming that it's fine tomorrow, we'll go for a swim"  "What would you do supposing that you were given the chance to see the future ?"

Other expressions used in conditional clauses:

Other time clauses

Time clauses with before, unless, when, while, as soon as, as long as, provided thatAfter when, as soon as, before, while, unless, as long as and provided that we use the present tense (not will).

• I’ll stay with Jake when I go to London next week.• As soon as I get my exam results, I’m going on holiday.• Before I go out tonight, I have to finish this essay.• While I’m away, Penny’s going to look after my dog.• I won’t be able to buy a car unless I find a job soon.• I’ll come with you as long as I don't have to drive.• You’ll pass your exam provided that you do enough revision.

WISH / IF ONLY CLAUSESWish and if only can be used with would and past tenses. These structures express regrets, and wishes for unlikely or impossible things. If only is more emphatic. (Traducción: Ójala, Desearía)

1. Past tenses are used to talk about the present.I wish I was better looking I wish I spoke FrenchDon’t you wish you could fly? If only I knew more people!

Were can be used instead of was, especially in a formal style.He wishes he were better looking.

2. We use a past perfect tense to express regrets about the pastI wish you hadn’t said that.Now she wishes she had gone to university.If only she hadn’t told the police, everything would be all right.

3. We use would or could... 1. to talk about future things which aren’t very probable.

I wish / If only I could go to the party.2. to talk about future things that we would like people (not)

to do. The subject of wish and the main verb is different. So here we only use would. This often expresses dissatisfaction or annoyance: It can sound critical.

I wish you would go home. If only the postman would come!

We can use this structure to talk about things as well as people.I wish this damned car would start. If only it would stop raining!

Sample rephrasing

First Conditional:- Be careful – someone’s going to see you! - If you are careful, nobody will see you!- If + Subject + present simple, subject + future will (aff or neg)

Second Conditional:

-Kathy wants to go to the movies but doesn't have any money-If Kathy had some money, she would go to the movies.-If + Subject + past simple (neg or aff), subject + would /could/might + infinitive + complements

Third Conditional:-Tom was not going to come to dinner the next day because you insulted him.-If you hadn’t insulted him, Tom would have come to dinner.- If + Subject + past perfect (neg or aff), subject + would/ could/might + have + pp + C

Wish / If onlyI’m sorry, but I can’t help you now.I wish I could help you.I would have gone to the concert, but I didn’t have a ticket.I wish I had had a ticket. / I had bought a ticket

- His book will be published provided he takes his manuscript to the editor.Unless he takes his manuscript to the editor, his book won’t be published.Unles + present simple, future simple (aff or neg)

-I didn't have an umbrella with me and so I got wet.I wouldn't have got wet, if I had had an umbrella with me.

-We don't go to school when it rains

If it rains, we don’t go to school.

-I didn't move the table because Jack didn't help me.

If Jack had helped me, I would have moved the table.

- You drink too much coffee, that's why you don't sleep well.

If you didn’t drink too much coffee, you would sleep well.

-You never talk to me, so you don't know anything about me.

If you talked to me, you would know something about me.

Other examples

THE ENDBy JFBS