LORDS LAW COLLEGE, SESSION 2024-25.

TOPIC-1: CONDITIONALS,

LL.B.PART-2

FOUR TYPES (2 Present Tense, 2 Past Tense)

1. Zero Conditional: If + present simple,…… present simple.

2. First Conditional: If + present simple,……. will + infinitive.
3. Second Conditional: If + past simple, ...would + infinitive.
4. Third Conditional: If + past perfect, ...would + have + past participle.

THE ZERO CONDITIONAL

We can make a zero conditional sentence with two present simple verbs (one in the 'if clause' and
one in the 'main clause'):

 If + present simple,.... present simple.

This conditional is used when the result will always happen. So, if water reaches 100 degrees, it
always boils. It's a fact. I'm talking in general, not about one particular situation. The result of the
'if clause' is always the main clause.The 'if' in this conditional can usually be replaced by 'when'
without changing the meaning.

For example: If water reaches 100 degrees, it boils. (It is always true, there can't be a different
result sometimes). If I eat peanuts, I am sick. (This is true only for me, maybe, not for everyone,
but it's still true that I'm sick every time I eat peanuts)

Here are some more examples:

THE FIRST CONDITIONAL

The first conditional has the present simple after 'if', then the future simple in the other clause:

 if + present simple, ... will + infinitive

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 It's used to talk about things which might happen in the future. Of course, we can't know what
will happen in the future, but this describes possible things, which could easily come true.

 If it rains, I won't go to the park.

 If I study today, I'll go to the party tonight.
 If I have enough money, I'll buy some new shoes.
 She'll be late if the train is delayed.
 She'll miss the bus if she doesn't leave soon.
 If I see her, I'll tell her.

First vs. Zero Conditional:

The first conditional describes a particular situation, whereas the zero conditional describes what
happens in general.

For example (zero conditional): if you sit in the sun, you get burned (here I'm talking about every
time a person sits in the sun - the burning is a natural consequence of the sitting)

But (first conditional): if you sit in the sun, you'll get burned (here I'm talking about what will
happen today, another day might be different)

First vs. Second Conditional:

The first conditional describes things that I think are likely to happen in the future, whereas the
second conditional talks about things that I don't think will really happen. It's subjective; it
depends on my point of view.

For example (first conditional): If she studies harder, she'll pass the exam (I think it's possible
she will study harder and so she'll pass)

But (second conditional): If she studied harder, she would pass the exam (I think that she won't
study harder, or it's very unlikely, and so she won’t).

THE SECOND CONDITIONAL

The second conditional uses the past simple after if, then 'would' and the infinitive:

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 if + past simple, ...would + infinitive

(We can use 'were' instead of 'was' with 'I' and 'he/she/it'. This is mostly done in formal writing).

It has two uses.

First, we can use it to talk about things in the future that are probably not going to be true. Maybe
I'm imagining some dream for example.

 If I won the lottery, I would buy a big house.(I probably won't win the lottery)
 If I met the Queen of England, I would say hello.
 She would travel all over the world if she were rich.
 She would pass the exam if she ever studied.(She never studies, so this won't happen)

Second, we can use it to talk about something in the present which is impossible, because it's not
true. Is that clear? Have a look at the examples:

 If I had his number, I would call him. (I don't have his number now, so it's impossible for me to
call him).
 If I were you, I wouldn't go out with that man.

How is this different from the first conditional?

This kind of conditional sentence is different from the first conditional because this is a lot more
unlikely.

For example (second conditional): If I had enough money I would buy a house with twenty
bedrooms and a swimming pool (I'm probably not going to have this much money, it's just a
dream, not very real)

But (first conditional): If I have enough money, I'll buy some new shoes (It's much more likely
that I'll have enough money to buy some shoes)

THE THIRD CONDITIONAL

We make the third conditional by using the past perfect after 'if' and then 'would have' and
the past participle in the second part of the sentence:

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 if + past perfect, ...would + have + past participle

It talks about the past. It's used to describe a situation that didn't happen, and to imagine the
result of this situation.

 If she had studied, she would have passed the exam (but, really we know she didn't study and
so she didn't pass)
 If I hadn't eaten so much, I wouldn't have felt sick (but I did eat a lot, and so I did feel sick).
 If we had taken a taxi, we wouldn't have missed the plane
 She wouldn't have been tired if she had gone to bed earlier
 She would have become a teacher if she had gone to university
 He would have been on time for the interview if he had left the house at nine

A WORK SHEET FOR THE PRACTICE WITH SOLUTION-KEY

Fill in the blanks.

1. If I knew what he was up to, I …………………………. him go.
a) will not let
b) would not let
c) would not have let
2. If she ………………………. more money, she could buy a home.
a) earns
b) earned
c) had earned
3. If you eat more greens, your health …………………………….
a) will improve
b) would improve
c) would have improved
4. If she had recognized you, she …………………………….. you.
a) will greet
b) would greet
c) would have greeted
5. If I ………………………….. her address, I could have contacted her.
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 a) didn't lose
b) haven't lost
c) hadn't lost
6. If she ……………………………… timely treatment, she would die.
a) don't receive
b) didn't receive
c) hadn't received
7. If you ……………………………. the cops, this crime could have been prevented.
a) alert
b) alerted
c) had alerted
8. If he had invested his money, he …………………………….. rich now.
a) will become
b) would become
c) would have become
9. If you don’t behave, I ………………………….. you out.
a) will throw
b) would throw
c) would have thrown
10. If she had learned her lesson, she ……………………………… the same mistake.
a) will not commit
b) would not commit
c) would not have committed
11. If you ………………………. right, you will be healthy.
a) eat
b) ate
c) had eaten
12. If she ………………………….. aloud, I would have heard her.
a) call
b) called
c) had called

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Answers

1. If I knew what he was up to, I would not let him go.

2. If she earned more money, she could buy a home.
3. If you eat more greens, your health will improve.
4. If she had recognized you, she would have greeted you.
5. If I hadn’t lost her address, I could have contacted her.
6. If she didn’t receive timely treatment, she would die.
7. If you had alerted the cops, this crime could have been prevented.
8. If he had invested his money, he would have become rich now.
9. If you don’t behave, I will throw you out.
10. If she had learned her lesson, she would not have committed the same mistake.
11. If you eat right, you will be healthy.
12. If she had called aloud, I would have heard her.

60 MIXED EXAMPLES FOR FURTHER PRACTICE OF CONDITIONALS

1. If it rains, I won't go to the park.

2. If I study today, I'll go to the party tonight.
3. If I have enough money, I'll buy some new shoes.
4. She'll be late if the train is delayed.
5. She'll miss the bus if she doesn't leave soon.
6. If I see her, I'll tell her.
7. If I won the lottery, I would buy a big house.(I probably won't win the lottery)
8. If I met the Queen of England, I would say hello.
9. She would travel all over the world if she were rich.
10. She would pass the exam if she ever studied. (She never studies, so this won't happen)
11. If I had his number, I would call him. (I don't have his number now, so it's impossible for
me to call him).
12. If I were you, I wouldn't go out with that man.
13. If she had studied, she would have passed the exam (but, really we know she didn't study
and so she didn't pass)
14. If I hadn't eaten so much, I wouldn't have felt sick (but I did eat a lot, and so I did feel
sick).
15. If we had taken a taxi, we wouldn't have missed the plane
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16. She wouldn't have been tired if she had gone to bed earlier
17. She would have become a teacher if she had gone to university
18. He would have been on time for the interview if he had left the house at nine
19. If I knew what he was up to, I would not let him go.
20. If she earned more money, she could buy a home.
21. If you eat more greens, your health will improve.
22. If she had recognized you, she would have greeted you.
23. If I hadn’t lost her address, I could have contacted her.
24. If she didn’t receive timely treatment, she would die.
25. If you had alerted the cops, this crime could have been prevented.
26. If he had invested his money, he would have become rich now.
27. If you don’t behave, I will throw you out.
28. If she had learned her lesson, she would not have committed the same mistake.
29. If you eat right, you will be healthy.
30. If she had called aloud, I would have heard her.
31. I will come if you invite me.
32. Plants will die if they get no water.
33. Plants will die unless they get water.
34. We cannot visit a foreign country if we do not have passports.
35. We won’t win if we don’t train hard.
36. We won’t win unless we train hard.
37. He’ll get into the trouble if he doesn’t behave.
38. You may go home if you have finished your homework.
39. We shall have to cancel the picnic if it rains tomorrow.
40. Buy some more milk if there is none in the fridge.
41. I won’t go on the trip unless my friends go with me.
42. All my work will be wasted unless I can restore my file.
43. You can borrow this video as long as you remember to give it back.
44. His condition will remain stable as long as he listens to the advice of the doctor.
45. You can go out providing you finish your homework.
46. You would work better if you got more sleep.
47. We couldn’t live if we didn’t eat and drink.
48. They would save a lot of money if they didn’t smoke.
49. We might get there if we ran.
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 50. What would happen if the earth stopped rotating?
51. Would we all fall off earth if there was no gravity?
52. I might have beaten you if I had trained harder.
53. He would not have lost his way if he had taken an up-to-date map with him.
54. He could hang from trees if he had strong tails like monkeys.
55. We could fly in the air if we had wings like birds.
56. If we had wings like birds, we could fly in the air. ( reverse syntax/order)
57. If we ran, we might get there.
58. If we had run, we might have got there.
59. As long as he listens to the advice of the doctor, his condition will remain stable.
60. I asked my mum if I could go shopping with her.

ASSIGNMENT-1: (Month: October-2024)

BUILD 10 SENTENCES OF YOUR OWN FOR EACH OF THE FOUR TYPES OF

CONDITIONAS. (40 SENTENCES)

 ZERO CONDITIONALS: 10 SENTENCES

 FIRST CONDITIONALS: 10 SENTENCES
 SECOND CONDITIONALS: 10 SENTENCES
 THIRD CONDITIONAL: 10 SENTENCES

ALSO UNDERLINE TENSES USED IN EACH OF THE ABOVE 60 EXAMPLES TO

DEVELOP UNDERSTANDING OF THE FOUR TYPES OF CONDITIONALS.

Lecture & Notes By:

Ms.Naheed Janjua (Gold Medalist)
(Lecturer English)
LORDS LAW COLLEGE