Conditionals

A conditional is said to be an action which depends on something. Conditionals are used to talk about real or unreal situations; they are sometimes called ‘If-clauses’. Real conditionals describe real-life situations. Unreal conditionals describe unreal and imaginary situations. W0hat are conditionals and If clauses in English grammar? They describe the result of something that might happen (in the present or future) or might have happened or didn't (in the past). They are made using different verb tenses. For example: If a certain condition is true, then a particular result happens.

There are four kinds of conditionals:

• Zero conditional
• First conditional
• Second conditional
• Third conditional

The Zero Conditional:

 The Zero conditional is used for things that are always true as long as the condition is met. The Zero Conditional is used for actions that are always true and when the conditions are satisfied. The structure of these conditionals is straight forward. For example: (If + present simple, present simple)

·         If you heat water to 100%, it boils.

·         If I drink coffee, I get headache.

In these examples, the result will always occur if the condition is met, so the time is not important.

The First Conditional:

A First conditional sentence is for future actions dependent on the result of another future action or event, where there is a reasonable possibility of the conditions for the action being satisfied. It can also be said as the real possibility in the future. For example: (If + present simple, + will)

·         If it rains tomorrow, we will go to the cinema.

·         If she gets good grades, she will go to university.

Here we are talking about the future, but we use a present tense for the condition and ‘will’ for the result. In this case, the person is sure about going to university. Therefore (if + present simple, + will).

The Second Conditional:

The Second conditional can be used to talk about imaginary present situations, where we are imagining something different from what is really the case. Like always. Jokes apart, we can also use it to talk about things in the future that are unlikely to happen, as the condition is unlikely to be met. We use the past tense in the condition part and would for the result.  (If + past simple, would + infinitive)

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

·         If I were you, I'd tell her.

The Third conditional: It is used when we are talking about the past and imagining something different from what actually happened, that means for imaginary past actions, where the conditions for the action WERE NOT satisfied. For example: If + past perfect + would have + past participle

·         If I had known, I would have helped. I didn't know and didn't help.

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

Fortunately for those of us who speak English, the theory is fairly easy to apply, since the conditional tense can usually be understood. As long as you remember the possibilities, you won't go wrong often by thinking of the conditional tenses. Give it a try for better understanding and knowledge on this subject. Remember there are no conditions applied for being wrong, mistakes are welcome. However, once realized, we should not repeat them.

We hope this blog has helped you understand Conditional tenses. To learn them better, enroll to the English language course at ELTIS!