CONDITIONAL CLAUSES- IF

CONDITIONAL CLAUSES

There are four kinds:

1. The zero conditional:

(if + simple present, … simple present)

      If you heat water to 100 degrees, it boils.

• The first conditional:

(if + simple present, … will + infinitive)

If it rains tomorrow, we’ll go to movie.

• The second conditional:

(if + simple past, … would + infinitive)

If I had a lot of money, I would travel around the world.

• The third conditional:

(if + past perfect, … would + have + past participle)

If I had gone to bed early, I would have caught the train.

Notice: we can put ‘if’ at the beginning or in the middle. It doesn’t matter at all.

Uses of conditional

1. First conditional:
2. Nature: open condition, what is said in the condition is possible.
3. Time: this condition refers either to present or to future time.

Ex: If he is late, we will have to go without him.

      If my mother knows about this, we are in serious trouble.

Form:

if + simple present, Will – Future

Ex: If I find her address, I will sed her an invitation.

The main clause can also be at the beginning of the sentence. In this case, don’t use a comma.

Ex: I will send her an invitation if I find her address.

Note: Main clause and / or if clause might be negative. See simple present and will future on how to form negative sentences.

Ex: If I don’t see him this afternoon, I will phone him in the evening.

Use

Conditional sentences Type 1 refer to the future. An action in the future will only happen if a certain condition is fulfilled by that time. We don’t know for sure whether the condition actually will be fulfilled or not, but the conditions seem rather realistic. So, we think it is likely to happen.

Ex: if I find her address, I’ll send her an invitation.

I want to send an invitation to a friend. I just have to find her address. I am quite sure, however that I will find it.

• Second conditional:
• Nature: unreal (impossible) or improbable situations.
• Time: present, the TENSE is past, we are talking about the present, now.

Ex: If I knew her name, I would tell you.

      If I were you, I would tell my father.

Compare:

• If I become president, I will change the social security system. (said by a presidential candidate)
• If I became president, I would change the social security system. (said by a school boy: improbable)
• If we win this match, we are qualified for the semifinals.
• If I won a million pounds, I would stop teaching. (improbable)

Form:

If + simple past, main clause with conditional I (= would + infinitive)

Ex: If I found her address, I would send her an invitation.

The main clause can also be at the beginning of the sentence. In this case, don’t use a comma.

Example: I would send her an invitation if I found her address.

Note: Main clause and / or if clause might be negative. See simple past and conditional I on how to form negative sentences.

Ex: If I had a lot of money, I wouldn’t stay here.

Were instead of was

In IF clause type II, we usually use, were – even if the pronoun is I, he, she or it.

Ex: if I were you, I would not do this.

Use:

Conditional sentences Type II refer to situations in present. An action could happen if the present situation were different. I don’t really expect the situation to change, however, I just imagine, what would happen if….

Ex: If I found her address, I would send her an invitation.

I would like send an invitation to a friend. I have looked everywhere for her address, but I cannot find it. So now I think it is rather unlikely that I will eventually find her address.

• Third conditional:
• Nature: unreal
• Time: past (so we are talking about a situation that was not in the past)

Ex: If you had warned me, I would have not told your father about that party. (but you didn’t and I have)

Form:

If + past perfect, main clause with conditional II

Example: If I had found her address, I would have sent her an invitation.

The main clause can also be at the beginning of the sentence. In this case, don’t use a comma.

Ex: I would have sent her an invitation if I had found her address.

Note: main clause and / or if clause might be negative. See past perfect and conditional II on how to form negative sentences.

Ex: If I hadn’t studied, I wouldn’t have passed my exams.

Use:

Conditional sentences Type III refer to the situations in the past. An action could have happened in the past if certain condition had been fulfilled. Things were different the; however, we just imagine, what would have happened if the situation had been fulfilled.

Ex: If I had found her address, I would have sent her an invitation.

Sometime in the past, I wanted to send an invitation to a friend. I didn’t find her address, however. So, in the end I didn’t send her an invitation.

Remember:

1. The conditional construction does not normally use will or would in if clauses.

EXCEPTION: if will or would express willingness, as in requests, they can be used in if clauses.

• Ex: If you will come this way, the manager will see you now.
• I would be grateful if you would give me a little help.

(please, come this way; please, give me….)

• For the second conditional, were replaces was:
• If I were a rich man….
• After if, we can either “some (-one, -where…)” or “any (-one, -where…) “
• If I have some spare time next weekend…… or:
• If I have any spare time……
• Instead of if not, we can use unless.
• Ex: I’ll be back tomorrow unless there is a plane strike.
• He’ll accept the job unless the salary is too low.
• There is a “mixed type” as well, for the present results of an unreal condition in the past:
• If + past perfect – would + inf.
• If you had wanted me (then), I would not be in prison. (now)

So far you have learned the basic rules for the Conditional Sentences. It depends on the context, however, which tense to use. So sometimes it’s possible for example that in an IF clause Type I another tense than simple present is used.

Ex: Present progressive or present perfect.

Conditional Type I (likely)

Conditional sentences Type II (unlikely)

Conditional sentences Type II (impossible)

Examples (if clause at the beginning)

Examples (if-clause at the end)

Examples (affirmative and negative sentences)

We can substitute could or might for would (should, may or must are sometimes possible, too).

• I would pass the exam.
• I could pass the exam.
• I might pass the exam.
• I may pass the exam.
• I should pass the exam.
• I must pass the exam.