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Understanding English Conditional Tenses

The document discusses the four main conditional tenses in English - zero, first, second, and third conditional. It provides examples for each conditional tense using scenarios involving an English learning monkey. The zero conditional is used to describe always true situations. The first conditional refers to possible real situations using "will, shall, can, or may". The second conditional talks about unreal situations using "would, could, or might". The third conditional refers to impossible past events using "would/could/might have".

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Maciek Bryńczak
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53 views2 pages

Understanding English Conditional Tenses

The document discusses the four main conditional tenses in English - zero, first, second, and third conditional. It provides examples for each conditional tense using scenarios involving an English learning monkey. The zero conditional is used to describe always true situations. The first conditional refers to possible real situations using "will, shall, can, or may". The second conditional talks about unreal situations using "would, could, or might". The third conditional refers to impossible past events using "would/could/might have".

Uploaded by

Maciek Bryńczak
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

The Conditional Tenses in English in conjunction with Talk to the Monkey!

Conditionals are sentences with two clauses – an ‘if clause and a main clause. There
are four main conditionals that are commonly used in the English language: zero
conditional, first conditional, second conditional and third conditional.

Zero Conditional
We use the zero conditional to talk about things that are always true:

If/when + simple present…, simple present…

The English monkey says…


When you write a new word down, you remember it more easily
If you practice, you improve.

First Conditional
We use the first conditional to talk about real and possible situations. The first
conditional uses the if/then structure and the words will, shall, can or may to convey the
future action being considered.

If + present simple…, will, shall, may, can +


infinitive.

The English monkey says…


If you read this tutorial until the end, you will
be very knowledgeable on the condition
tenses in English.
If you practice your English diligently every
day, you may be mistaken for a native
speaker one day!
You shall really improve your listening, if you
watch films and TV series in English.
If you don’t understand a word, you can
always consult your friendly dictionary!

Second Conditional
In some ways it is similar to the first conditional. It uses the same structure, but instead of
using the words will, shall, can, or may, the second conditional uses would, could, or
might.

We use the second conditional to talk about unreal but not physically impossible
situation; they could happen.
If + past simple…, would, could, might + infinitive.

The English monkey says…


If I had a million dollars, I might buy a house in NYC and live there 6 months a year.
If I spent six months a year in NYC, I would be fluent in English.
If I became president, I could improve the English taught in French schools!

Third Conditional
While the first and second conditionals talk about possible future events, the third
conditional deals with the past.

The third conditional talks about events in the


past and the effects of those past events not
happening. It uses the words
would/could/might have to convey these
impossible events.

If… + past perfect (had + past participle)…,


would/could/might have + past participle

If I hadn’t read this interesting tutorial, I


might have remained ignorant about the
conditional tenses for years to come.
If I had bought a lottery ticket, I could
have won the jackpot and bought an
apartment in NYC.
If I had started learning English at the age of 3, I would have been fluent a long
time ago.

Let’s look at the difference between the first, second and third conditionals.

You are planning to buy the house: If I can get more money together, I’ll buy that
apartment in Brooklyn!

Buying the house is virtually impossible: If I won the lottery, I would buy that apartment
in Brooklyn!

It is now impossible to buy the house (too late): If I had won the lottery, I could have
bought that house in Brooklyn!

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