Conditional Sentences in English Grammar - type of conditionals
There are three common type of conditional sentences.
Conditionals in English grammar
Conditional sentence consists on tow clauses:
- If Clause
- Main Clause
1 - If clause > present simple tense, main clause > future tense (will)
Examples:
- If you come on time, we will go to the Cinema.
- If I win the match, I will arrange a party.
- If it is hot tomorrow, i will stay at home.
See also (will) Future Simple Tense
2 - If clause > past simple tense : main clause > would
Examples:
- If mother was alive, she would help me.
- If you prepared well, you would easily do your paper.
- If it was hot tomorrow, i would stay at home.
See also Would
3 - If clause > past perfect tense : main clause > would have
Examples:
- If you had come on time, we would have gone to the Cinema.
- If I had won the match, I would have arranged a party.
- If it had been hot yesterday, i would have stayed at home.
See also Would have
Note: We can start the conditional sentence with main clause.
Examples:
- we will go to the Cinema If you come on time.
- she would help me If mother was alive.
- we would have gone to the Cinema If you had come on time.
Conditional Type - 1
We use this to express a simple statement of real situation.
Examples:
- If you come on time, we will go to the Cinema.
- Teacher will punish you if you don't complete your homework.
- You will fail your exams if you don't prepare harder.
- She will complain against you, if you keep teasing her like that.
Conditional Type - 2
We use this to express unreal situation in present and future.
Examples:
- If I had a lot of money, I would buy this house. (but I don't have a lot of money)
- If I were you, I would apologize her . (but I am not you)
- If I won the match, I would arrange a party. (but I don't expect to win the match)
- If it was hot tomorrow, i would stay at home. (but I don't have much hope that it will be hot)
Conditional Type - 3
We use this to express the situations that did not happen in the past.
Examples:
- If it had been hot yesterday, we would have stayed at home. (but it wasn't hot, so we didn't stay at home)
- If you had prepared harder, you would have passed your exams. (but you didn't prepare hard, so you didn't pass your exams)
- If I had made a lot of money, I would have bought a new house. (but I didn't make money, so you didn't buy a house)
- If she hadn't driven slowly, she would have had an accident. (but she was drove slowly, so she didn't have an accident)