Conditional sentences (conditionals) Got it! This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website Cookie Consent plugin for the EU cookie law My English Pages | Learn English Grammar Online Home/Grammar/Exercises/ AddThis Sharing Buttons Share to Facebook263Share to TwitterShare to PrintShare to EmailShare to More2.4K Grammar Exercises - Conditional sentences Do the exercises below on conditional sentences and click on the button to check your answers. (Before doing the exercises you may want to read the lesson on conditional sentences) Match the numbers with the letters to form conditional sentences: Decide which of the sentences below is conditional type 1, 2 & 3 : If I were rich, I would travel around the world. Put the verbs in brackets in the correct tense (conditional 1): If I (finish) early, I will call you. Put the verbs in brackets in the correct tense (conditional 2): If I (be) a star, I would help the needy. Put the verbs in brackets in the correct tense (conditional 3): Choose the correct answer:
Getting Your Tricky Conditionals Right I’ve had several questions recently about conditionals. Some of them are from listeners asking about kinds of conditionals called the “first, second, and third conditionals.” Meanwhile, a listener named Lorelai has a different question. She understands English conditionals fairly well, but is uncertain about conditionals like this one: If he died fighting, why didn’t they tell us about it? The dying happened in the past, but, as Lorelai wrote in an e-mail, “shouldn’t conditional clauses that refer to past actions be in past perfect and not past simple?” First, Second, and Third Conditionals Here’s the deal: First conditional, second conditional, and third conditional are not helpful or informative names, and in my opinion they aren’t worth teaching. Conditionals and the Subjunctive Mood You probably expect that if I’m talking about conditionals, I’m going to talk about the subjunctive mood. Present-Time Open Conditional: The Options Are Open Now let’s talk about the past tense.
Conditionals-English There are basically four types of conditional, though combinations of the four are also possible depending on the context. - Zero Conditional : if + present ==> present Expresses general thruths and scientific facts. Used to show an evidence, when it's always true. Ex: If it rains, the sun doesn't shine. - First Conditional : if + present ==> will + inf. We use it to make predictions or talk about actions or states that may or may not happen ( likely 50/50) Ex: If it rains, I'll stay at home. - Second Conditional : if + past simple ==> would + inf Refers to actions or states that are not real or unlikely to be real in the future. Ex: If I won 1,000,000, I would travel - Third Conditional : if + past perfect ==> would have + past participle Refers to actions in the past, and can be used to express regrets. Ex: If you hadn't given me a lift, I would have missed the train.
Weird Conditionals: If-Clauses That Are Always True Page 1 of 3 Today’s topic is the funny case of a special kind of if-clause, which is also a conditional mood construction. It’s special because where we expect that one part of the sentence must be true in order for the other part to be true, it logically can’t be so. When taken literally or interpreted as the unintended non-sequitur, these constructions can be funny. For example, a comedian named Demetri Martin once joked about a shop clerk who led him to the changing room having a "conditional identity" because she said, “If you need anything, I’m Jill.” (6). The Conditional Mood Is Expressed with Modal Auxiliary Verbs A language mood is like an attitude that is expressed with grammar or with words, and the conditional mood expresses probability, possibility, and also the fact that some things cause or lead to other things. (1) Kindness should be rewarded. That one expresses an opinion. (2) We could take the day off today. That one expresses possibility, or an option. Pages
Conditional Sentences Type I, II und III (Conditional Sentences, If-Clauses) Conditional Sentences are also known as Conditional Clauses or If Clauses. They are used to express that the action in the main clause (without if) can only take place if a certain condition (in the clause with if) is fulfilled. There are three types of Conditional Sentences. Conditional Sentence Type 1 → It is possible and also very likely that the condition will be fulfilled. Form: if + Simple Present, will-Future Example: If I find her address, I’ll send her an invitation. more on Conditional Sentences Type I ► Conditional Sentence Type 2 → It is possible but very unlikely, that the condition will be fulfilled. Form: if + Simple Past, Conditional I (= would + Infinitive) Example: If I found her address, I would send her an invitation. more on Conditional Sentences Type II ► Conditional Sentence Type 3 → It is impossible that the condition will be fulfilled because it refers to the past. Form: if + Past Perfect, Conditional II (= would + have + Past Participle) Exceptions Exceptions
Conditionals: other expressions ( unless, should, as long as ) - English Grammar Today - Cambridge Dictionary Conditional clauses can begin with unless. Unless means something similar to ‘if … not’ or ‘except if’. The verb forms in the examples are similar to sentences with if: we use the present simple in the unless-clause and shall, should, will, would, can, could, may or might in the main clause: Unless I phone you, you can assume the train’s on time. (If I do not phone you /except if I phone you, you can assume the train is on time.) We’ll have to cancel the show unless we sell more tickets at the last minute. Warning: We don’t use unless for impossible conditions: If the government had not raised food prices, there would not have been so many protests. Not: Unless the government had raised food prices … We don’t use unless and if together: We’ll go to the coast tomorrow unless it rains. Not: We’ll go to the coast tomorrow unless if it rains. In formal situations, we can use should + subject (s) + verb (v) instead of if: Had I known you were waiting outside, I would have invited you to come in.
Conditionals We use conditional sentences to say one thing depends on another. They can be used to talk about real or imaginary situations. One of the clauses starts with if (or a similar word) – this is the conditional clause. Don’t worry, it’s a lot easier than it sounds. If you don’t tell me, I’ll just keep asking.If I promise to travel less, will you forgive me? I know that one. That’s right. And can you change the order of the clauses round? Yes, and we leave out the comma in the middle of the sentence if the order is changed round. I’ll just keep asking if you don’t tell me. OK. Right again! If you travelled less because of me, I’d feel worse.If I had the opportunity to visit places like that, I wouldn’t complain! So, in the second example, Oliver doesn’t think he will have the opportunity to travel a lot. Can you use any other verbs, apart from would, in this kind of conditional? Yes, we sometimes use other modal verbs like might or could in the result clause (not the if clause). I see. Yes. Phew!
Conditionals - English Grammar Today - Cambridge Dictionary Conditional sentences consider imagined or uncertain situations and the possible results of these situations. The most common types of conditional sentences involve if: [imagined situation]If I get the job in Milan, [result]I’ll be pretty happy. [outcome]We’ll have the party in the garden [imagined situation]as long as it doesn’t rain. Conditional sentences consist of a conditional clause and a main clause: [conditional clause]If a lot of people come, [main clause]we’ll have to get extra chairs. [conditional clause]Unless you book weeks in advance, [main clause]you won’t get a flight. The verb in the conditional clause reflects the speaker’s point of view on whether the imagined situation is likely or impossible: If you win the next match, will you be in the semi-final? If I won a million pounds, I would give this job up tomorrow! If we had won the competition, we would have had a free trip to Moscow. Conditional clauses usually come before main clauses but they may also come after them:
Conditionals 1 « Learn English Conditionals are sentences with two clauses – an ‘if clause and a main clause – that are closely related. Conditional sentences are often divided into different types. Zero conditional We use the zero conditional to talk about things that are always true. If you heat water, it boils.When the sun goes down, it gets dark.It lights up if you push that button. The present simple is used in both clauses. First conditional We use the first conditional when we talk about real and possible situations. I’ll go shopping on the way home if I have time.If it’s a nice day tomorrow we’ll go to the beach.If Arsenal win they’ll be top of the league. In first conditional sentences, the structure is usually if + present simple and will + infinitive. Second conditional The second conditional is used to talk about ‘unreal’ or impossible things. If I won a lot of money I’d buy a big house in the country.Where would you live if you could live anywhere in the world? In January: If it snows tomorrow I’ll go skiing.
Third conditional We use the third conditional (if + past perfect, would + have + past participle) to talk about something in the past that did not happen. How is the third conditional different from the other conditionals? This is the way we imagine how things could have been different in the past. If I’d known, I would have worn something nicer. In this case, Amy didn’t know about the party so she didn’t wear special clothes. OK, so the bit after if is different to what really happened? Yes, then the next clause is imagining the result in the past, which didn’t happen, of course. I definitely would’ve remembered if you’d told me! So Alfie didn’t remember because Ollie didn’t tell him. Exactly. He wouldn’t have missed the bus if he hadn’t overslept. So he overslept and he missed the bus. Yes. If I’d seen him, I’d have asked him to come over. Can you use other verbs apart from would? Yes, we also use could or might. If they’d told me, I might have been able to help. These sentences all seem a bit negative.