Conditional sentences rules
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What’s the conditional in English?
We use the conditional in English to talk about something that might happen if something else were to happen. It can be a possibility real or imaginary:
- If I have enough money, I will go to Japan.
To make a conditional sentence in English you must use’if’.
How to form the conditional in English
There are four types of conditionals in English:
The ‘zero’ conditional
Both parts of the sentence are at the present simple:
If + simple present + simple present
It is often used to tell general truths:
- If you heat ice, it melts.
- If you mix red and yellow, you get orange.
It is also used to give instructions, with the imperative in the second part of the sentence:
- If Paul phones, tell him to meet me at the bar.
- If you‘re not sure what to do, ask Kevin.
The type 1 conditional
The first part of the sentence with ‘if’ is in the present simple, and the second part is in the future simple:
If + simple present + Simple future
- If it rains, you will get wet.
- If you don’t hurry, we will miss the train.
Here, we are talking about the present or the future and the situation is real. We’re talking about things that have a probable outcome.
The type 2 conditional
The first part of the sentence with ‘if’ is in the simple past, and the second part is in the present conditional:
If + simple past + Present conditional
- If it rained, you would get wet.
- If you went to bed earlier, you wouldn’t be so tired.
- If I knew her name, I would tell you.
With the type 2 conditional, we are talking about things that could have happened and their probable consequences.
The type 3 conditional
The first part of the sentence in ‘if’ is past perfect, and the second part is perfect conditional:
If + past perfect + Perfect conditional
- If it had rained, you would have got wet
- If you had worked harder, you would have passed the exam.
We are talking about something that could have happened in the past, and its probable outcome in the past.
⚠️ REMEMBER!
There is a last type of conditional in “if” where types two and three are mixed: the first part of the sentence in “if” is in past perfect, and the second part is in present conditional:
If + past perfect + present conditional
- If I had worked harder at school, I would have a better job now.
- If we had looked at the map, we wouldn’t be lost.
In the latter case, we are talking about something that could have happened in the past and would have had a probable consequence now.
⚠️ ‘If I was’ or ‘If I were’?
Take a look at the following examples:
- If I was rich, I would buy a house.
OR
- If I were rich, I would buy a house.
“If I were” is the correct way to say it. However, ‘If I was’ is commonly used in spoken English.
So, if in doubt (for example, when speaking during an oral exam for example), use ‘If I were...’ !
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