Most grammar books tend to recognize four basic configurations of
tenses in conditional sentences which vary in structure according to the time
that we are talking about (past, present or future) and the meaning. These four
types are normally referred to as the zero, first, second and third conditionals; we
will look at the forms and meanings of each of these in turn and also examine
some of the alternatives to these four basic types.
Zero-type
conditionals
Form and meaning
The form of the zero conditional causes no problems since the
present tenses are used in both clauses.
Zero-type conditionals
|
|
If clause
|
Main or conditional
clause
|
If + Present tense
|
, Present tense
|
If you heat water,
|
it boils.
|
The zero conditional is
normally used to talk about facts and to
express general truths.
First-type
conditionals
Form and meaning
The basic form for this type of conditional sentence can be seen
in the chart below. As before, the order of the clauses can be changed with no
change in meaning.
This type refers to future possibilities that are certain or probable.
First-type conditionals
|
|
If clause
|
Main or conditional clause
|
If + Present tense
|
Future tense
|
If they don't arrive soon
If they are late
|
we'll leave without them.
I'm going to be angry.
|
You will note that on the if side of the sentence any present tense can be used,
while in the main clause the speaker is free to choose any future that helps to
express any additional meaning that the speaker wants to express.
If he's sleeping, he won't wake up until morning. (The Present Continuous in the first part of the sentence
expresses the present temporary nature of the situation and the will
in the second part is making a prediction about the future.)
Alan is going to post me the recipe, if he finds it. (In the first clause I am expressing Alan's intention so going to
is the best future to use, while the second clause contains a Simple Present
tense.)
If he's staying at the party, I'm leaving. (In the first clause I am thinking about the possible current
state of affairs, so I choose the Present Continuous, while in the second I am
referring to the future plan that I have in mind should he decide to stay, so
again I choose the Present Continuous.)
If you have finished the essay, leave it on my desk. (By using the Present Perfect tense in the if
clause I am stressing the completed nature of the action, while in the second
clause I have used an imperative, which has a future meaning.)
Second-type
conditionals
Form and meaning
This type is often called the hypothetical or 'unreal' future
conditional since it is usually used to speculate about either very unlikely future situations or
present and future impossibilities.
Second-type conditionals
|
|
If clause
|
Main or conditional clause
|
If + Past tense
|
would + verb
|
If I had time
If I had wings
|
I would drop you off at school.
I would fly.
|
Other examples are:
- If you were coming with us, you would have a great time. (Either I am not expecting you to come or you have already told me that you do not intend to come, so the situation is very unlikely to happen.)
- I'm sure
my mother would help if you asked her. (I am unsure whether you are
going to ask so I hedge my bets by using an 'unreal' conditional; if I had
used I'm
sure my mother will help instead, this gives the impression
that I feel you are likely to ask.)
- If I were you, I'd call back later. (This is a fixed expression used for giving advice, but since I can never be you, I use the future hypothetical conditional; you should note that many people would say if I was you and this is becoming increasingly common.)
Third-type
conditionals
Form and meaning
This type refers to hypothetical situations in the past.
In this case we use the Past Perfect tenses in the if clause and would
+ have
in the main clause.
Third-type conditionals
|
|
If clause
|
Main or conditional clause
|
If + Past Perfect tense
|
would have + past
participle
|
If I had known about his condition
If we had known about the storm
|
I would have phoned for you earlier.
we wouldn't have started our journey.
|
The main uses of the third conditional are for speculating about
the past, expressing regrets, excusing our own actions and criticizing others.
Some of the uses tend to overlap in practice as the examples below demonstrate:
- If we'd
taken the first turning, we would have been at home by now.
- If I'd
bought the lottery ticket, we would have won millions.
- If I'd
realized you were going to be so sensitive, I'd have kept quiet.
- The
meeting would've finished before 1:00 if you'd said less.
There is one other major variation to the form given in the chart
above; in place of the more usual
If I had known about his condition.
we can use :
Had I known about his condition... where the if is omitted and the subject and auxiliary verb are
inverted.
Mixed
conditionals
The four types of conditional sentence discussed above appear to
fit into very rigid patterns of form and meaning but we often find exceptions
to these rules. In many cases we may want to talk about events that happened or
did not happen in the past and the present results of those events. Therefore,
we will often need to mix clauses from different conditional types in order to
get our meaning across clearly and unambiguously. Taking one example from
above, we might want to say:
If I'd bought the lottery ticket, we would be millionaires now.
In this sentence I want to refer to something that I did not do in
the past (and probably regret) and the possible effect that this action might
have had on the present - so I use a third-conditional if
clause and a second-conditional main clause. Swapping around these two types we
also get:
- If he
was going to come, he would have arrived by now
(with a second-conditional if clause and a
third-conditional main).
This kind of mixing of conditional types is not uncommon.
TASK
Complete the
conditional sentences (type I, II and III)
1.
Once upon a time
the cat bit the mouse's tail off. “Give me back my tail,” said the mouse. And
the cat said, “Well, I (give) ….you
back your tail if you fetched me some milk. But that's impossible to do for a
little mouse like you.”
2.
The mouse,
however, went to the cow. “The cat (give / only) …. me back my tail if I fetch her
some milk.”
3.
And the cow said,
“Well, I would give you milk if you (get) …. me some hay. But that's
impossible to do for a little mouse like you.”
4.
The mouse,
however, went to the farmer. “The cat will only give me back my tail if the cow
(give) …. me some milk. And the cow (only / give)
….. me milk if I
get her some hay.”
5.
And the farmer
said, “Well, I would give you hay if you (bring) ….. me some meat. But that's
impossible to do for a little mouse like you.”
6.
The mouse,
however, went to the butcher. “The cat will only give me back my tail if the
cow (give) ….. me milk. And
the cow will only give me milk if she (get) ….. some hay. And the farmer (only
/ give) ….. me hay if I get him some meat.”
7.
And the butcher
said, “Well, I would give you meat if you (make) ….. the baker bake me a
bread. But that's impossible to do for a little mouse like you.”
8.
The mouse,
however, went to the baker. “The cat (give / only) ….. me back my tail if I fetch her
some milk. And the cow (give / not) ….. me milk if I don't get her
hay. And the farmer will only give me hay if the butcher (have) ….. some meat for him. And the butcher will not
give me meat if you (bake / not) ….. him a bread.”
9.
And the baker
said, “Well, I (give) ….. you bread if you promise never
to steal my corn or meal.”
The
mouse promised not to steal, and so the baker gave the mouse bread, the
mouse gave the butcher bread. The butcher gave the mouse meat, the mouse
gave the farmer meat. The farmer gave the mouse hay, the mouse gave the
cow hay. The cow gave the mouse milk, the mouse gave the cat milk. And the
cat gave the mouse her tail back.
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