“If… Then”: Conditional Sentences in English | English Grammar

Defining the Conditional in English

We’ll start with a definition.

When we use the conditional tense, we’re speculating about what could happen, what might happen, and what we wish would happen.

Therefore, a conditional sentence expresses both a situation and the results/consequences of the situation. A conditional sentence has an “if clause” (the condition) and a principal clause (the result).

In other words: they are sentences that contain the word “if.”

 

Zero Conditional Sentences

The zero conditional is extremely straightforward. We don’t use it to speculate or wish, the way we use the other conditionals. Instead, we mainly use it to talk about general facts and truths.

Here’s an example: If you get a cut, then you will bleed.

To construct the zero conditional:

If + verb in simple present + verb in simple present

Examples:

• If you mix blue and yellow, it becomes green.
• If it rains, the roads get wet.
• If you don’t water your plants, they die.

First Conditional Sentences

The first conditional describes an “if…then” situation. If the condition is met, then the action will be performed. In the first conditional, we are sure that this will be the case.

For example: If the weather is good tomorrow, we will go climbing.

To construct the first conditional:

If + conditional verb in present + action verb in future

The present form of a verb states the condition. The future form of a verb expresses what will happen if the condition is met. If the condition is met, the action will take place.

Examples:

• If you give me the keys, I’ll take care of your plants
• If I buy this house, nobody will visit me
• An example with an interrogative sentence: If I build a bookshelf, are you going to put your books in it?

The same conditional structure works for affirmative, negative, and interrogative phrases.

 

Second Conditional Sentences

Here’s the deal with the second conditional: The condition is not met… but if it were, the action would happen.

For example: If the weather were good, I would go swimming.

To construct the second conditional:

If + conditional verb in simple past + action verb in conditional present

If the condition is not met in the current moment, but it could be in the future, the past simple is used to express the condition, and the conditional present to express the action. The conditional present is formed with the auxiliary would + the infinitive of the verb without “to”.

Examples:

• If you studied more, you would earn better grades
• They would be nice to him if he wasn’t so rude (In this particular case, the two parts of the phrase have switched places, but the rule for expressing the second conditional is still followed)
• And an interrogative sentence: If you were taller, would you play basketball?

You construct this conditional in the same way whether the phrase is affirmative, negative, or interrogative.

 

Third Conditional Sentences

In the third conditional, the condition has not been met, so the action can no longer happen.

For example: If the weather had been good, they would have moved today.

To construct the third conditional:

If + conditional verb in past perfect + action verb in conditional past

If it’s no longer possible to perform the action, we express the condition that would have had to happen in the past perfect, and the condition that could not be performed in the conditional past. The conditional past is formed with the auxiliary would + have + the past participle of the verb.

Examples:

• I would have come if you had asked me
• It would have been warmer if you hadn’t left the window open.
• Example of a negative phrase: If you hadn’t driven that fast, you wouldn’t have had an accident

Sometimes, to simplify things, people use the past simple instead of the past perfect. Take a look at this example: If he didn’t drive that fast, he wouldn’t have had an accident.

 

Real or Unreal?

Another way you can think about English conditionals is to divide them into two categories: real and unreal conditions. Real conditions are, well, real: they are conditions that will happen, are happening, or are possible. On the other hand, unreal conditions refer to conditions that are hypothetical or did not happen.

Types of conditional statements

As you learned above, there are various types of conditional sentences: zero conditionals, first conditionals, second conditionals, third conditionals, and even some types of mixed conditionals. But this time around, we’ll divide them into two categories:

• real conditionals

• unreal conditionals

Remember—real conditionals refer to facts, possible conditions, and things that have already happened or will happen. Unreal conditions are hypothetical, impossible, did not happen, or will not happen.

A general rule to help you form real vs. unreal conditionals (at least sometimes) is that real conditionals use the verb was and unreal conditionals use the verb were.

 

Learn Conditional Clauses with Beyonce

If I Were a Boy is a classic pop and R&B song by the inimitable Beyoncé… and it’s also a masterclass in conditional phrases. Beyonce uses if clauses throughout the song, specifically unreal conditional clauses, so let’s find a few examples and analyze them.

In this song, there are various examples of the second conditional, which refers to unreal or imaginary facts.

“If I were a boy, even just for a day

I’d roll outta bed in the mornin’

And throw on what I wanted, then go.”

Written out like a sentence, it would say:

“If I were a boy, I would roll out of bed in the morning and throw on what I wanted, then go.”

Here, in this lyric, we have the two clauses needed to create an unreal conditional phrase: the if clause + the principal clause.

In an “if” clause, a verb comes after the word “if.” In our example, the “if” clause is: “If I were a boy…”

The principal clause contains the auxiliary verb (would, could, or might) followed by the principal verb. In our example: “I’d (I would) roll outta bed in the morning…”

Exercise: Find more examples of “if clauses”

Here are the complete lyrics to If I Were a Boy by Beyonce. If you want to challenge yourself, try to identify all the if clauses in the song!

If I were a boy
Even just for a day
I’d roll out of bed in the morning
And throw on what I wanted then go
Drink beer with the guys
And chase after girls
I’d kick it with who I wanted
And I’d never get confronted for it
‘Cause they’d stick up for me

If I were a boy
I think I could understand
How it feels to love a girl
I swear I’d be a better man
I’d listen to her
‘Cause I know how it hurts
When you lose the one you wanted
‘Cause he’s taken you for granted
And everything you had got destroyed

If I were a boy
I would turn off my phone
Tell everyone it’s broken
So they’d think that I was sleeping alone
I’d put myself first
And make the rules as I go
‘Cause I know that she’d be faithful
Waiting for me to come home
To come home

If I were a boy
I think I could understand(…)

It’s a little too late for you to come back
Say it’s just a mistake
Think I’d forgive you like that
If you thought I would wait for you
You thought wrong

But you’re just a boy
And you don’t understand
(And you don’t understand, oh)
How it feels to love a girl
Someday you’ll wish you were a better man
You don’t listen to her
You don’t care how it hurts
Until you lose the one you wanted
‘Cause you’ve taken her for granted
And everything you had got destroyed
But you’re just a boy

Quiz

Let’s do a quick little test, just to make sure you’ve been paying attention!

Remember that you need to use “was” with a real condition and “were” with an unreal condition.

• If I ____ a billionaire, I could buy myself a mansion.
• I am sorry if I _____ rude to you earlier.
• If I ____ you, I would not take the train. 

Check your answers

*Skip to the end of this article to check your answers.

How did you do? 🤓 If the English conditional still confuses you, don’t worry. With practice, you’ll learn to understand and use the English conditional with no problems.

 

[VIDEO] If Clauses: How to Use Conditional Sentences in English

If you prefer videos to articles, sit back, relax, and enjoy this video by our English teacher, Lisa Joy. She explains everything you should know about English conditionals!

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