Conditionals

Sentences with if used to express Possibilities

BUE1013 Presentation Skills

Tan Sui Chee
Politeknik Ungku Omar
1st Conditional (Real)
if clause in the Present Tense; Main
clause in the Future Tense
Used to talk about the consequence of a
possible action:
If you buy 10 copies, you will get one free.
(its a promise given by the seller.)
If a student fails the paper, he will have to
resit it to graduate. (A rule)
If I write my essay this afternoon, I will have
time to go out tonight. ( It is still morning, and
it is quite possible that I will do this. )
 2nd Conditional (Hypothetical /
Unreal)
if clause in the Past Simple; Main Clause
in the Conditional Tense.
Used to talk about the consequences of a
Hypothetical / Unreal action:
I dont have money with me. But if I did, how
many free copies would I get if I bought 20?
What would you do if you had one million ringgit?
If I were you, I would not take the offer.
If I wrote my essay this afternoon, I would have
time to go out tonight. ( it is still morning, but I
think it is less likely that I will do this. )
 3rd Conditional (Past)
if clause in the Past Perfect; main clause
in the Conditional Perfect Tense.
used to talk about the possible consequence
of an action that did not happen:
I would have joined the army if I had not got
this job. (But I got the job, so I didnt join the
army.)
If I had written my essay this afternoon, I
would have had time to go out tonight. ( It is
now evening, and I havent written my essay: it
is now impossible for me to go out. )
 Zero Conditional
Sometimes sentences with if express certainty
rather than possibility. The zero conditional is
used to talk about something that is always
true, or that was always true in the past:
If you mix blue and red, you get purple.
(Present simple in both parts of the
sentence )
If I asked her to come with us, she always
said no. (Past Simple in both parts of the
sentence)
 Mixed Conditionals
1. Past & Present
. If I had taken MUET last semester, I would be
able to apply for a place in the university now.
(But I didn't take MUET last semester and I
cant apply for a place in the university now.)
2. Past & Future
. If she had signed up for the Sabah trip last
week, she would be joining us tomorrow.
(But she didn't sign up for the ski trip last week
and she isn't going to join us tomorrow.)
 Comparison between 1st, 2nd &
3rd Conditionals

1. If you buy 10 copies, you will get

one free.
2. I dont have money with me. But if I
did, how many free copies would I
get if I bought 20?
3. If I had bought 30 copies of this
during the promotion, I would have
got 5 free. (But I didnt buy any, so I
didnt get any free.)
 Impromptu Speaking about a
Hypothetical situation / 2nd
Conditional
1. What would you do if you had 1 million ringgit?
. If I had 1 million ringgit, I would
2. If you were the Prime Minister, what changes
would you make?
. If I were the Prime Minister, I would do 3 things.
Firstly, I would
3. If you could have a vacation anywhere in the
world, where would you go?
. Well, I would go to ,,,
4. If you could turn back time, what changes would
you make?
 Impromptu Speaking about an Unreal
Past 3rd Conditional

1. If you had not continued your studies at PUO,

what would you have done?
. If I hadnt continued my studies, I would have
2. If you boss had given you a rise in salary, would
you still have quit to continue your studies?
. If he had done that, I would have
3. If you had got married, would you have quit
your job?
4. If you had scored 9 As in SPM, what would you
have done? Would you still have applied to
study at a polytechnic?
THANK YOU