CONDITIONAL SENTENCE

CONDITIONAL SENTENCES

Definition of Conditional Sentence:

Conditional sentences (also known as conditional clauses or if clauses) are made up of two halves. One half (the half with the word if in) is a condition, and the other half (the main clause) states the action to occur if the condition is fulfilled.

1.The Types of Conditional Sentence with if.

There are three types of conditional sentence:

a.      Conditional Sentence Type 1

Type 1 sentences are used when it is likely that the condition will be fulfilled. It is formed like this:

Examples of Conditional Sentence Type 1:

·         If you swallow some of the cleaning fluid, it will kill you.

·         If I get a little humility, I will be perfect.

How to Use First Conditional Sentences

First conditional sentences are used to express situations in which the outcome is likely (but not guaranteed) to happen in the future. Look at the examples below:

·         If you rest, you will feel better.

·         If you set your mind to a goal, you’ll eventually achieve it.

Note that we use the simple present tense in the if-clause and simple future tense in the main clause—that is, the clause that expresses the likely outcome. This is how we indicate that under a certain condition (as expressed in the if-clause), a specific result will likely happen in the future. Examine some of the common mistakes people make using the first conditional structure.

·         If you will rest, you will feel better.

·         If you rest, you will feel better.

Explanation: Use the simple present tense in the if-clause.

·         If you set your mind to a goal, you eventually achieve it.

·         If you set your mind to a goal, you’ll eventually achieve it.

Explanation: Use the zero conditional (i.e., simple present + simple present) only when a certain result is guaranteed. If the result is likely, use the first conditional (i.e., simple present + simple future).

b.      Conditional Sentence Type 2

Type 2 sentences are used when it is unlikely that the condition will be fulfilled. It is formed like this:

Examples of Conditional Sentence Type 2:

·         If you swallowed some of the cleaning fluid, it would kill you.

·         If I had a little humility, I would be perfect.

How to Use Second Conditional Sentences

Second conditional sentences are useful for expressing outcomes that are completely unrealistic or will not likely happen in the future. Consider the examples below:

·         If I inherited a billion dollars, I would travel to the moon.

·         If I owned a zoo, I might let people interact with the animals more.

Notice the correct way to structure second conditional sentences is to use the simple past tense in the if-clause and an auxiliary modal verb (e.g., could, should, would, might) in the main clause (the one that expresses the unrealistic or unlikely outcome). The following sentences illustrate a couple of the common mistakes people make when using the second conditional:

·         If I inherit a billion dollars, I would travel to the moon.

·         If I inherited a billion dollars, I would travel to the moon.

Explanation: When applying the second conditional, use the simple past tense in the if-clause.

·         If I owned a zoo, I will let people interact with the animals more.

·         If I owned a zoo, I might let people interact with the animals more.

Explanation: Use a modal auxiliary verb in the main clause when using the second conditional mood to express the unlikelihood that the result will actually happen.

c.       Conditional Sentence Type 3

Type 3 sentences are used when it is impossible for condition to be fulfilled because the possibility has already passed. It is formed like this:

Examples of Conditional Sentence Type 3:

·         If you had swallowed some of the cleaning fluid, it would have killed you.

·         If I had had a little humility, I would have been perfect.

How to Use Third Conditional Sentences

Third conditional sentences are used to explain that present circumstances would be different if something different had happened in the past. Look at the following examples:

·         If you had told me you needed a ride, I would have left earlier.

·         If I had cleaned the house, I could have gone to the movies.

These sentences express a condition that was likely enough, but did not actually happen in the past. The speaker in the first sentence was capable of leaving early, but did not. Along these same lines, the speaker in the second sentence was capable of cleaning the house, but did not. These are all conditions that were likely, but regrettably did not happen.

Note that when using the third conditional, we use the past perfect (i.e., had + past participle) in the if-clause. The modal auxiliary (would, could, shoud, etc.) + have + past participle in the main clause expresses the theoretical situation that could have happened.

Consider these common mistakes when applying the third conditional:

·         If you would have told me you needed a ride, I would have left earlier.

·         If you had told me you needed a ride, I would have left earlier.

Explanation: With third conditional sentences, do not use a modal auxiliary verb in the if-clause.

·         If I had cleaned the house, I could go to the movies.

·         If I had cleaned the house, I could have gone to the movies.

Explanation: The third conditional mood expresses a situation that could have only happened in the past if a certain condition had been met. That’s why we use the modal auxiliary verb + have + the past participle.

2. Conditional Sentence with Expressing Hope

We use 'hope' to talk about things in the present or future that we think have a good chance of happening. On the other hand, we use 'wish' to talk about things that are impossible or unlikely. See more about 'wish' here.

We usually need to use '(that) + clause' after 'hope' or 'to + infinitive'. It's very common to drop 'that'.

·         I hope that you have a great time.

·         I hope that she passed the exam.

·         I hope to pass the exam.

·         I hope to get there early.

We can also use two short answers: 'I hope so' and 'I hope not'.

a.Hope for the present

We can use the present simple (mostly for stative verbs) or the present continuous.

·         I hope (that) it's sunny where you are.

·         I hope (that) she's having a wonderful time.

b.Hope for the future

We can use either the present simple (more common) or the future simple (less common). It usually doesn't change the meaning.

·         I hope that she comes to the party tomorrow.

·         I hope that she'll come to the party tomorrow.

We often use 'can' with 'hope' for the future.

·         I hope you can come to the party tomorrow.

We can use 'to + infinitive' with 'hope' for the future. When we use 'to + infinitive', the subject is the same as the subject of 'hope'.

·         I hope to come to the party tomorrow. (=I hope I can come to the party tomorrow.)

·         I hope to run a marathon this year.

c.Hope for the past

We can also use 'hope' to talk about the past when we think it was possible for the thing to really happen.

1: We can use 'hope' for the past when something happened and is finished, but we don't know what the result was. For example, if you have taken an exam, but I don't know if you passed or not. We still use 'hope' in the present tense, because it's something that we hope now, but the thing that we're thinking about is in the past. We can use the past tenses and the present perfect in the normal way (if something has an effect on the present, we use the present perfect and so on).

·         I hope she passed the exam.

·         I hope John hasn't got lost.

·         I hope Amanda found her keys.

2: We can use 'hope' for the past when we do know the result or outcome. For example, if you have taken an exam and failed and I know you failed. In this case, we use 'hope' in a past tense, because we no longer hope for the event or thing; we know it didn't happen. We use it to tell someone about how we felt in the past.

·         I hoped you would pass the exam. (But you didn't pass).

·         I hoped I'd see Lucy at the meeting. (But I didn't see her.)

It's common to use 'hope' in the past continuous (which doesn't really change the meaning from the past simple) and in the past perfect (which makes the idea that the hoping is finished stronger) in these kinds of sentences.

·         I was hoping you would pass the exam.

·         I had hoped you would pass the exam.

This use is very compatible with the third conditional.

·         I was hoping to pass the exam, and I would have passed it if I hadn't got sick.

d.Hope for 'future in the past'

Advanced point: Sometimes we use 'hope' for 'future in the past'. So, in the following example, the mother thought, in the past, 'I hope my son will go to university', and when we talk about this from the present, we use 'would'. We don't know if the son in fact went to university or not from this sentence.

·         She always hoped that her son would go to university.

Another example:

·         I got lost in the middle of London and I hoped that I would be able to find my way back to my hotel. (We don't know if the person found the hotel or not.)

e.Hope for negative wishes

It's also possible to use 'hope' in a very negative way. In this case, the thing doesn't need to be possible.

·         I hope your hair falls out and you lose all your money!

3. Conditional Sentence with Expressing Wish

The English word “wish” is used when the speaker wants reality to be different than it actually is. Wish is followed by a noun clause using past tense verb forms. The following pairs of examples express “true” statements about the past, present, and future, and how you would express a desire for the opposite (the wish) to be true.

a.      A wish about the past:

·         Ellen couldn’t come to the convention.

·         I wish Ellen could have come to the convention.

     b. A wish about the present:

·         It is snowing right now.

·         I wish it weren’t snowing right now.

     c.A wish about the future:

·         Robbie isn’t going to be able to attend the party.

·         I wish Robbie could attend the part.

4. Conditional Sentence without If

·         If I had known his real motive, I wouldn’t have supported him.

We can express the same idea without if.

·         Had I known his real motive, I wouldn’t have supported him.

Another example is given below.

·         If I had realized the importance of physical training, I would not have wasted my time in front of the television.

The above sentence can also be written as:

·         Had I realized the importance of physical training, I would not have wasted my time in front of the television.

·         If problems arise, we will seek professional help.

The same idea can be expressed without if.

·         Should problems arise, we will seek professional help.

We can also make conditional forms by putting ‘were’ at the beginning of the sentence.

·         Were I you, I wouldn’t permit this. (= If I were you, I would not permit this.)

Conditional sentences can also be made with unless.

·         Unless you work hard, you will not pass. (= If you do not work hard, you will not pass.)

Sources:

http://www.grammar-monster.com/glossary/conditional_sentences.htm

https://www.grammarly.com/blog/conditional-sentences/

https://www.englishgrammar.org/conditional-clauses/

http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/hope.html

ELISKA TEJANINGTYAS

4SA02

13614504