|
Type |
If
Clause |
Main
Clause |
|
Zero |
s+v1+v5+obj |
s+v1+v5+obj |
|
One |
s+v1+v5+obj |
s+will/may/can+v1+obj |
|
Two |
s+v2+obj |
s+would/might/could+v1+obj |
|
Three |
s+had+v3+obj |
s+would/might/could+have+v3+obj |
|
|
Had+s+v3+obj |
s+would/might/could+have+v3+obj |
Consider these things in conditionals.
The
order of the clauses is not fixed – the if clause can be first or second.
We never
use will or won’t in the if clause.
We never
use would or wouldn’t in the if clause.
We
never use would have or wouldn’t have in the if clause.
If
the if
clause comes first, a comma is usually
used.
If
the if
clause comes second, there is no need to
use a comma.
Grammar Focus: Miscellaneous Conditionals
1.
Zero conditional
simple
present+ simple present for universal truths
If you mix blue and red you get purple. If you cut your
hand, it bleeds.
Water takes the shape of bowl if you pour into it. Water
changes into steam if you boil it.
If you heat snow, it melts.
2.
Instructions
for the future simple present + imperatives
If you are sick, stay home today.
If he scolds you, tell me immediately.
If someone calls me, please tell them I am out. If you
find my purse, return it to me.
If you see my brother, tell him to go home very fast. If
teachers scold you, don't be angry.
3.
Suggestion/
warning for the future simple present+subject+should+v1
If you are weak at maths, you should study
hard.
If she cannot pass exam, she should quit her studies. If
you want to meet me, you should come early.
If you have to catch the first bus, you should go to
station early. If you want to lose weight, you must exercise.
If you need scholarship, you have to meet
the principal.
4.
First
Real Conditional
simple
present+s+will/may/can+v1 for possible things
If you work hard, you can pass exam. If you invite me, I
may come to you. If you hit that dog, it will bark at you.
If you study well, you will score good marks. If he goes
there, he may see her.
If they help me, I will help them in
return.
5.
Second
unreal conditional
simple
past +would/could/might+v1
If you worked hard, you could pass exam. If you invited
me, I might come to you.
If you hit that dog, it would bark at you.
If you studied well, you would score good marks. If he
went there, he might see her.
If they helped me, I would help them in
return.
6.
Third
hypothetical conditional
past
perfect +would/could/might+ have+v3 for hypothetical things
If you had worked hard, you could have passed exam. If
you had invited me, I might have come to you.
If you had hit that dog, it would have
barked at you.
If you had studied well, you would have
scored good marks.
If he had gone there, he might have seen
her.
If they had helped me, I would have helped
them in return.
Grammar Focus:
Common Errors
|
Incorrect Correct |
|
|
|
If you
book the room
on time, you
will receive a 20% discount. |
|
|
If we had a bigger
flat, we could
invite friends to come and stay. |
|
|
If the weather hadn’t been so bad, I could have gone to meet them. |
|
|
I’ll try to get there
about 6.30 if you want
me to arrive earlier. |
Additional
Practice: Read these sentences.
I would give up work if I could afford it.
You learn a language better if you visit the country
where it is spoken. If you don’t invest in this, you are saying no to a
potential fortune.
If you see him, give him this note.
You can stay for the weekend if you like.
If anyone calls, tell them I am not at
home.
If he improved his IT skills, he would
easily get a job.
You would have known what was going on if
you had listened.
They would have been here by now if they had
caught the early train.
If I was the principal, I would do things differently. If
metal gets hot, it expands.
She glares at me if I go near her desk.
The enemy had a weakness somewhere, if only he could find
it. She was acting as if she had seen a ghost.
Don’t be afraid to ask if you don’t
understand.
Do you mind if I put the television on? If she notices,
she never says so.
We would not have succeeded if we had not
had more time.
What happens if nobody comes to the party?
Dust and dirt soon accumulate if a house
is not cleaned regularly.
If it is convenient I can come tomorrow.
One should never criticize if one is not
sure of one’s facts.
If you add all these amounts together you can get a huge
figure. Listen to the tune and see if you can remember the words.
Do you mind if I turn the TV off?
If she has any weakness, she won’t get the
job.
If I were you, I would start looking for
another job.
You won’t get paid for time off unless you have a doctor’s note. I won’t tell them unless you say I can.
If she worked harder, she’d pass her
exams.
A.
Use the correct form of verbs to complete
these sentences.
1.
I (tell)
you about it if I had known all the facts.
2.
We (go) to
the movie last night if we had been free.
3.
They (drive)
to the country if they had had a car.
4.
Had
I known your number, I (telephone) you.
5.
Were I you, I (begin)
to study Spanish.
6.
He
would have finished sooner if he (hurry).
7.
If
he had felt better, he
8.
Unless
he had some money, he
(go)
to the party.
(not
buy) the textbook.
9.
He
would help us if he (can).
10.
What
would you do if you (be) I?
11.
Had
I had more time, I (do) it.
12.
If
he had been well, he (come) to the meeting.
13.
If today (be) a holiday,
he would spend it at the beach.
14.
If
yesterday
15.
If
he comes to us, he
(be) a holiday, he would have spent it at the
beach. (live) with us.
16.
Unless my sister (get)
employed, I won’t leave this job.
17.
Don’t
waste your valuable time if you (want) to get good result.
18.
Had
someone stolen my car, I (report)
it to the police.
19.
He
will come if you (invite) him.
20.
If you (attend) the function, he will be happy.
21.
If you (accept) the invitation, he would be happy.
22.
She
wouldn’t have died, if she had (receive) proper medical care.
23.
He
will not succeed unless he (work) hard.
24.
If she (be) honest, she would not have lost her job.
25.
He
cannot go to work unless he (recover) from his illness.
26.
If he (speak) English, he could find a good job.
27.
If he (try) he would have succeeded.
28.
If you (leave) that wasp alone, it might not have
stung you.
29.
If
Myna (have)
more time, she would study more.
30.
If
I (be)
in your position, I would study Dutch.
31.
If he (know) her better, he could go with her to the party.
32.
If
I (have)
the money, I would buy that suit.
33.
If
John (be)
here now, he would help us.
34.
If Hem (be) a good student, he would speak English better.
35.
If our room (be) larger, we could study better.
36.
If the weather (be) warmer, we would go for a walk.
37.
If he (prepare) his lessons every night, he would
be a better student.
38.
I
would go if I
39.
John
would do it if he
(have)
more time.
(be)
not so busy.
40.
We would speak better if we (have)
more practice.
B.
Use
correct form of the verbs to complete these
sentences.
1.
If
the bus’s late, we (walk).
2.
She
(call) you if she (have) time.
3.
If
it costs too much, I (buy) a smaller one.
4.
If
the doctor can’t see me, I (go) somewhere else.
5.
If
the class (be) full, we (find) another one.
6.
What
will we do if the taxi (not come)?
7.
Will
you phone me if there (be) any problems?
8.
I
(go) next week, if I get a train ticket.
9.
If
he (see) me here, he (be) really angry.
10.
Mary
(be) worried if you don’t come to the airport.
11.
If
it (snow) this winter, we (go) skiing.
12.
I
(lend) them some money if they (ask) me.
13.
If
you (visit) Narayanahiti Durbar, you
(see) some old buildings.
14.
If
you drove more carefully, you (not have)
so many accidents.
15.
If
he (get up) earlier, he’d get to work on time.
16.
If
we (have) more time, I could tell you more about it.
17.
If
you (sell) more products, you’d earn
more money.
18.
I
could help you if you (trust) me more.
19.
His
car would be a lot safer if he (buy) some new
tyres.
20.
The
children would be better swimmers if they (go) swimming more .
21.
I
wouldn’t mind having children if we (live) in the country.
22.
If
I (be) you, I wouldn’t worry about going to
university.
23.
If
I (have) any money, I’d give you some.
24.
Your parents (be) a
lot happier if you phoned them more often.
25.
Where
would you like to live if you (not
live) in Pokhara?
26.
What
would you do if you suddenly (win) half a million pounds?
27.
Would you mind if I
(not give) you the money I owe you today?
28.
Water (freeze) if the
temperature falls below zero.
29.
If
he’s angry, his face always (go) bright red.
30.
Put
your money in a saving account, if you (want) ten percent interest.
31.
If
the microphone isn’t working, you (cannot) hear what he’s saying.
32.
The
radio (not work) if the batteries are flat.
33.
If
there (be) only a few students, we
usually close one of the classes.
34.
The
machine (not work) if it doesn’t have enough
oil.
35.
If
a balloon is filled with hot air, it (rise).
36.
If
water (boil), it changes into steam.
37.
The
machine stops automatically if something (go)
wrong.
38.
The
school (resume) today if the principal had resigned today.
39.
Our
country would develop faster if there (be) no
corruption.
40.
The government
would have been
overthrown if Yogamaya’s campaign (be) successful.
C.
Choose
the correct form of the verbs to complete the following conditional
sentences.
1.
If
I (was, were) you, I would certainly do it.
2.
John
looks as though he (was, were) sick.
3.
He
acted as if he (had, had had) a great shock.
4.
If
I (knew, had known) this yesterday, I would have acted differently.
5.
If
it (rains, will rain) tomorrow, we
may not go away.
6.
I
(could go, could have gone) if they
had asked me.
7.
If
he (was, had been) here last week, he would have seen us.
8.
I
(will, would) like to study Spanish
if I had the time.
9.
If
today (was, were) a holiday, we could
go to the beach.
10.
If
yesterday (was, had been) a holiday, we could have gone to the beach.
11.
Call
me if he (comes, will come) before noon.
12.
If
I (would be, were) in his position, I would not accept the work.
13.
He
will not go unless she (goes, will go) too.
14.
I
feel as if I (ate, had eaten) a large dinner.
15.
I
think he (would come, would have come) if we had asked him.
16.
I
wish I (were, would be) in Florida now.
17.
I
wish I (went, had gone) with you to the party last night.
18.
If
he (be, were) here, we would go to movie tomorrow.
19.
If
he (will come, comes) soon, please let me know.
20.
If
the weather (is, will be) nice tomorrow, we
may drive to the country.
21.
If
I were you, I (will, would) walk to school.
22.
If
he (tells, tell) the truth, everyone (believe, will believe) him
23.
If
he (can, could) help us, I am sure he would.
24.
If
I (know, knew) how to swim, I would
go swimming every day.
25.
If
I (had, have) time tomorrow, I will
go to the movie.
26.
When
John (comes, will come) here tomorrow, Mary
will talk with him.
27.
He
would go to the theater more often if he (have, had) the time.
28.
He
said he (may, might) be late.
29.
If
he (knows, knew) my number, he could telephone me.
30.
He
(call, would call) me if he (have, had) any problem.
31.
If
I (were, would be) in Fun Park now, I
would go swimming.
32.
If
he (posted, had posted) the letter, I
(would get, would have got) it.
33.
Had
he not died, he (would become, would have become) very popular.
34.
Had
the club got parking area, it (would be, would have been) much better place
for the visitors.
35.
I
wouldn’t call you unless you (call, called) me.
36.
If
you (study, studied) hard, you will
get a first class.
37.
If
I (find, found) the key, I will give
it to you.
38.
If
we (start, started) now, we could be
in time.
39.
If
you (are, were) a millionaire, how would you spend your time?
40.
If
he (stop, stopped) smoking, he might get well.
D.
Complete
the following sentences with the appropriate conditional clauses.
1.
If
I had known about it, I .
2.
They
would have come if they .
3.
If
I were you, I .
4.
If
you had asked me, I .
5.
If
he had telephoned me, I .
6.
I
would go if I .
7.
He
would have helped us if .
8.
If
England had been better prepared for war, Germany .
9.
If
I had more time, I .
10.
He
would have succeeded if he .
11.
If
I had been invited, I .
12.
If
the weather were nice, we .
13.
If
the weather had been nice, we .
14.
They
would have joined the class if they .
15.
I
might have caught cold if I .
16.
If
John were here, he .
17.
He
would speak better if .
18.
If
he studied more, he .
19.
If
I could speak French, I .
20.
If
l were in Florida now, I .
21.
If
he had more time, he .
22.
If
I knew her well, I .
23.
If
John prepared his lessons every night, he .
24.
If
today were a holiday, we .
25.
If
he came to class regularly, he .
26.
Mary
would go with us if .
27.
We would go for a
walk in the park if .
28.
If
today were Sunday, we .
29.
Had
I had a car, I .
30.
I
would go for swimming if I .
