An independent clause that refers to a hypothetical situation contingent on another set of circumstance.
45
votes
4answers
3k views
How do the tenses in English correspond temporally to one another?
Non-native speakers often get confused about what the tenses in English mean. With input from some of the folk here I've put together a diagram that I hope will provide some clarity on the matter.
I ...
31
votes
13answers
1k views
Why do I instinctively want to use the present tense with a conditional?
My boss is not a native speaker of English, so he often asks me to correct his writing. The problem is, he wants me to explain why I make changes, and doesn't accept "it just sounds better that way" ...
11
votes
5answers
674 views
“When I am 18, I will…” or “When I will be 18, I will…” [duplicate]
Should I say:
When I am 18, I'll take my driving test
or
When I'll be 18, I'll take my driving test
Which one is the correct sentence?
10
votes
3answers
817 views
“whether” vs. “if ”
How can I know when should I use whether or if in a sentence? I can not see any difference between whether and if. When should I use each? For me, they are the same and I am not sure if there is a ...
9
votes
2answers
322 views
Is this an imperative sentence?
Is this sentence an imperative sentence, or does it have conditional meaning?
You hang around with riffraff like the Weasleys and that Hagrid, and it’ll rub off on you.
8
votes
2answers
752 views
“Will have” vs. “Would have”
By the end of the year, I would have attended this school for five years.
Of course, the "most" correct way of writing this would be:
By the end of the year, I will have attended this school ...
8
votes
5answers
2k views
Future tense in conditional clauses
All the textbooks I have ever come across during the course of my studying English emphasize that future tense should not be used in conditional clauses.
For example,
If it rains in the evening, ...
7
votes
3answers
420 views
“Would have” in conditional clauses
I have been taught to use the if I had form in conditional clauses referring to the past:
If the president had asked me, I would have told him the same thing.
As far as I can tell though, the ...
7
votes
3answers
740 views
Different conditional clauses — “if you saw”, “if you were to see”, “if you had seen”
Given the following sentences, what is the difference between the conditional clauses in them?
If you saw a lion in a thick forest, what would you do?
If you were to see a lion in a thick ...
7
votes
5answers
521 views
What's the tense for repetitive past action?
In English, "would" usually denotes a conditional voice. "If I were sleepy, I would go to bed."
But I've caught myself using it to denote repetitive or habitual past action. "On Thursdays, we would ...
7
votes
3answers
4k views
“It would be better if you drink/drank all the water”
Which one of the following is grammatically correct?
It would be better if you drink all the water.
It would be better if you drank all the water.
The question is, obviously, about the use ...
7
votes
4answers
299 views
Usage of 'had been' or 'were'
I was doing an exercise. I completed the sentence as following.
If you were my child, I would have demanded that such an irresponsible teacher be fired.
But the answer given in the book is ...
6
votes
5answers
1k views
“If I knew you're coming I wouldn't have come”
Is the statement
If I knew you're coming I wouldn't have come
correct? Should we use
If I had known you're coming, I wouldn't have come
instead? Please consider American-British ...
6
votes
2answers
653 views
Use of “should have” in conditional sentences
In Return of the Soldier (1918) I came across what appears to be a conditional sentence:
I never should have got this telegram if me and my husband hadn't been down there last September and told ...
6
votes
3answers
213 views
Conditionals with multiple verbs
I'm an ESL teacher. Normally I teach lower intermediate but I also teach a mixed level grammar review class. I pride myself on being able to explain things clearly but today I found myself in THREE ...
6
votes
2answers
778 views
Using “if” or not in a sentence structure when expressing doubt
I use the following sentence construction a lot.
I'm not sure if this is right.
I was not aware of any problem until recently I noticed that quite a few of my colleagues used it a little ...
5
votes
3answers
244 views
“Even were he not to…”
I am currently reading "Do androids dream of electric sheep?" by P.K. Dick and I have come across a grammatical structure I don't quite understand. The excerpt is the following (no spoilers, don't ...
5
votes
3answers
11k views
When should I use “Would”, “Would have”, “Will”, and “Will have”?
I hope someone, once and for all, can clarify (with examples) the difference in usage of will vs. would vs. would have vs. will have.
5
votes
5answers
527 views
Is it correct to say: “I would do something, be it me”?
I mean that "I would do something, if it only were me. But it was not me, so I've done nothing".
5
votes
2answers
442 views
Future tense usage: “When you see it …”
I wonder why the phrase is "When you see it you will shit brix," and not "When you will see it you will shit brix."
Is the version with two will incorrect? What grammar rule says that you should not ...
5
votes
2answers
4k views
“I would have never said” vs. “I would never say”
I know a lot of questions have been asked about would or would have but I haven't found any answers that help me understand this three-party conversation, with C possibly a native speaker:
A: How ...
4
votes
2answers
339 views
Conditionals in the future
My colleague and I have a hot discussion about which is correct.
My version is:
If you don't fix the bug I will send you a patch.
and his one is:
I would send you a patch if you don't fix ...
4
votes
3answers
2k views
'Provided that' followed by two conditions
In a sentence where 'provided that' is followed by two conditions, is a second instance of 'that' required, optional or wrong?
1: [statement A], provided that
[statement B] and [statement C]
...
4
votes
1answer
450 views
Conditional sentences not starting with “if”
Were I rich, I would live on Long Island.
If I were rich, I would live on Long Island.
Is the first sentence still used, or is used in particular contexts (in example, to give emphasis to the ...
4
votes
4answers
2k views
“If I didn't have” vs. “if I hadn't had”
Can someone please tell me if these sentences are correct? I prefer number one. Here I am trying to talk about a past condition that didn't actually happen because the person had the example sentences ...
4
votes
1answer
198 views
Trouble with second conditionals (with **could**)
"I would do B if you could do A."
This is a statement which has been bothering me for quite a while. I come across such statements often and, to me, they make no sense. Could is the subjunctive of ...
4
votes
3answers
626 views
What's an example of good style for an “if/then” statement?
I'm not sure what's common for conditional statements, with and without alternative consequent clauses, in speech—even my own—but as a computer programmer, I'm niggled whenever I have to write English ...
4
votes
3answers
177 views
Can the Future Perfect be used in a main clause of a conditional sentence that has a stative/non-action verb in the if-clause?
A student asked me this question today about a sentence like:
(1) If Canada's population is 40 million, the Canadian economy will have been more dynamic.
I was asked if it corresponded, in a future ...
3
votes
3answers
1k views
“would love/like to” usage?
What is the difference between the sentences
"I would love/like to play cricket" and " I want to play cricket." Is there any difference in the moods?
3
votes
6answers
1k views
How to correctly write this conditional phrase?
I’m struggling with a conditional clause. This one is easy:
If I were you, I would do xyz ...
But I have these three statements:
I was a student.
It was my vacation.
My professor ...
3
votes
4answers
1k views
Is the conditional a mood or a tense?
Is the conditional a mood or a tense? I've heard it described in both ways.
It seems more like a mood as it is often lumped with hypothetical constructions and the subjunctive mood. I could see it ...
3
votes
2answers
396 views
When is “will” used in an “if” clause?
Given the following sentences that use will in the if clause (which is seldom with if-clauses and therefore, I'm not sure they all are even grammatical or not).
If you will/would kindly lend me ...
3
votes
3answers
588 views
Conditional + Let you know
The context is that a group of us asked a friend to come and have a breakfast, instead of study for a test (bad influence, I know). Initially she said she wouldn't come, but after some badgering on ...
3
votes
3answers
131 views
“If it was not cold, I would like more” — conditional
Now I'm having hard time on something.
I ate something yesterday and it was cold. Now grammatically, it must be
If it was not cold, I would like it more.
But I feel like it does not sound right, ...
3
votes
2answers
199 views
Perfect tenses in conditionals
Why does one sometimes use the perfect tense in conditions of the first type? Say,
I will do something if you have done something.
I did something when he had done something.
instead of,
...
3
votes
4answers
368 views
Past conditional statements
What is the difference between the following two statements?
If I went home for dinner, I took a glass of soft drink.
If I went home for dinner, I would take a glass of soft drink.
Are both ...
3
votes
1answer
917 views
Speculative conditional: Why does it use the past tense or past perfect tense?
We use simple past to state a hypothetical present situation that we would like to speculate about (If they were here, I would be happy), past perfect for a hypothetical past (had they been here, I ...
3
votes
5answers
154 views
Right tense for conditional event in nondescript time?
What is the right tense to describe an event that might have occured, be occuring or occur in the future, if (not) for something that happened in the past?
Unike, in the examples, which anchor the ...
3
votes
2answers
79 views
Wording an 'If-Then' Statement Tense
I need help phrasing the last part of this conditional sentence (assume I can't change the first conditional statement):
If I died tomorrow, I would have wanted to go skydiving.
or
If I ...
3
votes
3answers
355 views
3rd conditional plus 2nd conditional?
"If you had seen him as a child, you would agree that he is extraordinary."
In this sentence, changing the past perfect to simple past strikes me as wrong, and changing the "would agree" to "would ...
3
votes
2answers
136 views
“when” + conditional sentence + tense
1: She said she would do it when she came home.
2: She said she would do it when she comes home.
Which is correct, and why?
3
votes
0answers
45 views
Contrary-to-fact conditionals usage error [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
“If I would have lost you” vs “If I had lost you”
My question is about a usage error involving contrary-to-fact conditionals. Instead of something like this:
If I knew ...
2
votes
6answers
6k views
“won't” vs. “wouldn't”
Are these two words interchangeable? How do you know when to use one or the other?
For some sentences it is easy to know which one to use, but not for others. The type of sentences that are difficult ...
2
votes
4answers
5k views
“If I go..” vs. “If I will go..” referring to the future [duplicate]
Possible Duplicate:
Future tense in conditional clauses
Which one is correct?
option 1: If I go there, I can meet her
or
option 2: If I will go there, I can meet her
I clearly ...
2
votes
3answers
993 views
past perfect + would have + ed-participle / past simple + would + infinitive
Could you clarify difference between sentences:
If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses
If I asked people what they wanted, they would say faster horses
...
2
votes
5answers
1k views
'became' vs. 'become'
The following two sentences seem to have the same general meaning to me:
If I ever became a musician, I would grow my hair
If I ever become a musician, I will grow my hair
I was wondering ...
2
votes
3answers
620 views
Would vs Will in future events
What is the difference between the following:
Sorry, mate. I wouldn't be able to come for dinner.
Sorry, mate. I won't be able to come for dinner.
2
votes
2answers
300 views
Past perfect sentence in “I would have killed the snake if I had hit him…”
Is the following a correct past perfect sentence?
I would have killed the snake if I had hit him hard with a stick.
2
votes
2answers
708 views
Must conditional sentences begin with “if?”
I've been looking at conditional sentences (conditional clauses).
Every example I've see is along the lines of, "if [x] then [y]."
I've seen alternatives/substitutes for the if part:
were I ...
2
votes
4answers
1k views
A conditional sentence with present perfect
Is it correct to say:
If you have finished it by then, I'll come and take it.
thus using the present perfect in the "if" clause to mean the future instead of the present?
