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CONDITIONALS

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The English Conditional

There are a number of structures in English that are called conditionals. They are used to talk about possible or imaginary situations. A "condition" is a "situation or circumstance".

For example: If a certain condition is true, then a particular result happens.

There are four basic conditionals that we use in English.

Zero ConditionalFirst Conditional

Second ConditionalThird Conditional

There are some more conditionals formed by mixing some of these four.

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Structure of Conditional Sentences

The structure of the conditionals is simple. There are two basic possibilities in terms of order in the sentence:

IF Condition Result

If  it rains,  we will get wet 

or like this:

Result IF  Condition

We will get wet if  it rains. 

Notice that we only use a comma in the first example.

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Conditionals: Time and Probability Table

Probability Conditional Example Time

Certain zero If you heat water to 100 degrees celsius, it boils

any time

Likely  first If it rains, I will stay in. future

Unlikely second If I won the lottery, I would retire.

future

Impossible second If I had the money, I would lend it to you

present

Impossible third If I had seen him, I would have given him the message.

past

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Zero Conditional: certainty

We use the zero conditional when the result of the condition is always true, like a scientific fact.

Take some ice. Put it in a saucepan. Heat the saucepan.

What happens?

The ice melts (it becomes water).

You would be surprised if it did not!

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IF 

condition  result 

If  you heat ice,  it melts.

  present simple  present simple 

Notice that we are thinking about a result that is always true for this condition. The result of the condition is an absolute certainty. We are not thinking about the future or the past, or even the present. We are thinking about a simple fact.

We use the present simple tense to talk about the condition. We also use the present simple tense to talk about the result. The important thing about the zero conditional is that the condition always has the same result.

We can also use when instead of if, for example: When you heat ice, it melts.

Zero Conditional

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Let's think about more examples using the zero conditional.

IF   CONDITION(present simple)

RESULT(present simple) 

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First Conditional: real possibility

We are talking about the future. We are thinking about a particular condition or situation in the future, and the result of this condition. There is a real possibility that this condition will happen.

For example, it is morning. You are at home. You plan to play tennis this afternoon. But there are some clouds in the sky. Imagine that it rains. What will you do?

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IF condition result

If it rains, I will stay at home.

present simple will + base verb

Notice that we are thinking about a future condition. It is not raining yet. But the sky is cloudy and you think that it could rain. We use the present simple tense to talk about the possible future condition. We use WILL + base verb to talk about the possible future result.

The important thing about the first conditional is that there is a real possibility that the condition will happen.

First Conditional: real possibility

Sometimes, we use shall, can, or may instead of will. For example: If you are good today, you can watch TV tonight.

You can also say "I will stay home if it rains".

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Let's think about more examples using the first conditional.

IF   CONDITION(present simple)

RESULT (will + base verb)

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Second Conditional: unreal possibility or dream

The second conditional is like the first conditional. We are still thinking about the future. We are thinking about a particular condition in the future, and the result of this condition. But there is not a real possibility that this condition will happen.

For example, you do not have a lottery ticket. Is it possible to win? No! No lottery ticket, no win! But maybe you will buy a lottery ticket in the future. So you can think about winning in the future, like a dream. It's not very real, but it's still possible.

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IF condition  result

If I won the lottery,  I would buy a car.

past simple would +  base verb

Second Conditional: unreal possibility or dream

You can also say "I would buy a car if I won the lottery".

Notice that we are thinking about a future condition. We use the past simple tense to talk about the future condition. We use WOULD + base verb to talk about the future result. The important thing about the second conditional is that there is an unreal possibility that the condition will happen.

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Sometimes, we use should, could or might instead of would. For example: If I won a million dollars, I could stop working.

Let's think about more examples using the second conditional.

IF   CONDITION(past simple)

RESULT (would+ base verb)

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probability conditional example time

100% zero  If you heat ice, it melts.

any time

50% first If it rains, I will stay at home.

future

10% second If I won the lottery, I would buy a car.

future

0% third  If I had won the lottery, I would have bought a car.

past 

Conditionals: SummaryHere is a chart to help you visualize the basic English conditionals. Do not take the 50% and 10% figures too literally. They are just to help you.

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If I study and practise the conditionals, I will learn how to use them quickly!