First, Second, and Third Conditional

What are Conditionals in English: explanation supported with examples

During classes conducted in Ukrainian, the topic of complex sentences always poses the most challenges. Unfortunately, English also has a similar grammatical feature in the form of conditionals. What is meant by this construction? It's a sentence where the first subordinate part talks about a condition, whereas the second, which is the main clause, describes the consequences. In English, such sentences are called conditionals or if-sentences, since they always contain the conjunction "if'' or its alternative. Here comes an example of such a sentence: If you go to the forest, you can get lost.

At first glance, everything seems very straightforward, isn’t it? Don't jump to conclusions because you'll have to get familiar with several types of conditional sentences, each with its own peculiarities.

Zero Conditional

These sentences have three peculiarities:

1. Always talk about something in the present tense, more specifically, in the Present Simple.
2. Convey to the listener/reader widely known or scientifically proven facts, or things so commonplace that they have become habitual.
3. The particle "if" can be replaced with "when”.

Here are examples of zero conditionals:

• If you put fire to the paper, it will catch fire;
• When we put a bottle of water in the freezer, the water freezes and expands in volume.

First Conditional

In such cases, the language usually refers to real events or those which are likely to happen with a high degree of probability. The subordinate clause of a first conditional sentence is in the Present Simple tense. The main clause can be in the Future Simple tense, including an imperative, or feature modal verbs with an infinitive. However, it's better to illustrate this fact accompanied with examples:

• If you decide to study abroad, we will rarely see each other;
• If you see a promotion for tomato juice, buy two liters of such juice;
• If you want to go to the Carpathians, we can go to the mountains during your vacation.

Sometimes this type uses the word "unless" + an affirmative verb. Here is an example: You won't get into university unless you don't study.

Second Conditional

These are sentences where the language in and of itself is expressed by means of the Present Simple tense, discussing events that cannot happen or are highly unlikely to occur. They have the following structure:

• main clause – it is always the Past Simple tense with "were";
• subordinate clause – it includes would, could, might followed by the infinitive.

Examples will help to recognize such conditional sentences, not only the rule:

• We might walk outside if the sun was shining;
• If I were an electrician, I would repair this outlet.

Third Conditional

This type of sentence is used when you need to talk about a hypothetical situation in the past that ultimately did not happen. If you want to reflect on something that never took place or criticize someone, let's have a look how to express it in English:

• in the subordinate clause, you should use the Past Perfect tense;
• in the main clause, you should use the words would, could, might followed by the perfect infinitive.

Here is the rule about the third type of these sentences showed in practice:

• If you had reminded me, I wouldn't have left your passport at home;
• If you had enrolled in driving school last year, you could be driving now.

Mixed Type

If you are willing to fully master a foreign language, you should also be aware of mixed conditionals in English. The simplest example of this type of sentence is when in the subordinate clause, we talk about a possible event in the past, and in the main clause, we discuss its real consequences in the present.  For example:

• If you had charged your phone, we would have already found our way to the hotel;
• If I hadn't lost my keys, I wouldn't have known my neighbor.

How to quickly learn the usage of Conditionals in English with Booyya courses

We offer a course that will help you fully understand the most difficult topic in English grammar. It contains merely one lesson, but it consists of three important parts:

• grammatical explanation of 1st, 2nd and 3rd conditionals in English – in simple words, so that everyone can understand;
• exercises which allow you to better understand grammar and check how successful your learning process was;
• useful aids in the form of tables with explanations of the first, second and third types of sentences, which can be used for a quick revision of the topic, for example, before an exam.

Note that the course and its accompanying exercises are designed for at least an intermediate level of language proficiency. If you haven't reached this level yet, you can easily find other courses on the Booyya website that will help you master English step by step.