Questions tagged [conditionals]
An independent clause that refers to a hypothetical situation contingent on another set of circumstance.
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Conditional use of “be”
Why is be required after let, for example: Let x be an even number greater than 10.
But we use is with if: for example: If x is an even number greater than 10, then…
Why don’t we say If x be an even ...
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Verb tense in Phineas and Ferb song “History of Rock”
I've been learning English for decades but I still don't get how its verb tenses work.
The Phineas and Ferb episode “Dude, We're Getting the Band Back Together” has the song “History of Rock”. In its ...
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Second and third condition if [migrated]
Why is the probablity of the second conditional if more than that of third conditional if? I read somewhere that the probablity of the 2nd conditional is 40% where the 3rd conditional is 0%. My ...
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Reality or unreality-if you had seen the notices next day in all the papers, you must have supposed my evening's entertainment an unqualified success [closed]
(From The Wrecker by Robert Louis Stevenson and Lloyd Osbourne, Chapter VI, published 1892)
Passage 96
Pinkerton was in the waiting-room, feverishly jotting in his pocket-book. As he saw me enter, he ...
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How to use Past Conditional in "It would have been better if my brother had died rather than struck a bargain in the red desert"?
I'm not sure if there's a better way to say this:
It would have been better if my brother had died rather than struck a bargain in the red desert.
Am I using that right? Ugh!
Help me please. This is ...
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Can we mix past perfect, present progressive, etc. in conditionals? [duplicate]
Is it acceptable / possible to mix past perfect, present progressive, etc. in conditionals?
In particular: The 2nd conditional (apologies to those who reject this common but by no means universal ...
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Is it ever grammatically correct to use "hadn't had + V3"?
I know about the 4 types of conditionals, and this usage is not one of them. I have not seen any such example, but somehow it sounds a little correct, while seeming totally wrong. So I was just ...
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"provided that there be" vs. "provided that there is"
Which sentence is grammatically correct? "Be" or "is"?
Retail stores for the sale of goods are allowed in this zone provided that there BE no outside display, storage, or sale of ...
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Is this sentence is a conditional? "Marta on if she would ever make a tinder account" [closed]
Is it correct to use this struct? (If + noun + would)
I was looking for any examples of this structure, and every time I received an answer that this is a conditional.
I have also asked chatgpt, and ...
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Conditional from past perspective: "They realized that if X WAS . . ." or "They realized that if X WERE . . ."?
I'm wondering which of the following sentences is correct:
They realized that if the threat WAS not contained, it could endanger the nation."
They realized that if the threat WERE not contained, ...
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Express an uncertain action in the past using conditionals
I want to express the consequences of something which I am not sure actually happened in the past.
intention: Maybe my brother studied, or maybe he didn't, but if he really did, then he will pass the ...
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Is "did" used conditionally, regionally or otherwise? e.g. "Did you want..." instead of "Would you want..."
My partner frequently asks me questions that, when read literally, are questions about the past, but in intent and intended response are actually conditional questions:
Did you have any thoughts ...
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Acceptability of concessive parenthetical if clause
Is the following sentence correct?
They might build a community that, if it could not change the depressing nature of the work, could at least make the workplace more bearable.
Is it okay to have ...
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Whom can I trust, if not ____. a) he b) him which one is grammatical? [duplicate]
I know about the conditional sentences that go as following:
"If I were he, I would have forgotten the whole lesson."
In the sentence above, "he" is preferable to "him,"...
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Conditional clause within a relative clause
Is the following sentence grammatically correct?
The word "if" is not used in this sentence, which I'm not sure is a mistake or not.
And if anyone has a link to a reference on conditional ...
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Conditional sentence in the song "What Makes You Beautiful" [closed]
A small part of the lyrics in the song "What Makes You Beautiful" is
If only you saw what I can see, you'll understand why I want you so desperately.
But according to the second ...
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What is this conditional-type sentence used to express reluctance or uncertainty?
The difference between "I can fix the computer" and "I could fix the computer" (present tense) is that the latter expresses more reluctance or doubt.
What is this type of sentence ...
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Grammatical error in the expression "what would occur without"
Background
There is a system called YOLO which identifies objects in an image. For instance, YOLO can identify dog, bicycle, and car as objects in the image.
Internally YOLO uses a neural network ...
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In "Jack will come to mother's house and will come to father's house so long as X", does "so long as…" apply to both preceding conditions?
I need to interpret the following sentence:
With regard to Christmas this year, Jack will come to mother's house and will come to father's house so long as Jill does not have Covid.
Does the "...
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what's the major difference between (were to have and was to have) [duplicate]
Including here:
If she were to be right about that, we would never hear the end of it.
If you were to have gone to Florida, you would have been there when the hurricane hit.
So, what's the main ...
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Using "would" instead of "would have" with a past perfect subjunctive clause
I came across this youtube video with the following grammar question.
Choose the correct sentence.
a. If you had learned the lyrics, you would be singing in the choir.
b. ...
c. If you learned the ...
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'Would' to indicate that the information given is not absolutely certain
Page 60 of Learner English: A Teacher's Guide to Interference gives two example sentences that the author claims are ungrammatical uses of "would" when indicating uncertainty.
*The ...
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Conditional, is IF optional?
I’ve just read this sentence:
Machines might decide the world would be better without humans.
Why there is not an IF?
Machines might decide IF the world…
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"If there is a god please help me"
What conditional is this sentence?
If there is a god please help me.
Is it real conditional?
This explanation was taken from a website called VOA Learning English
The present real ...
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Could someone explain whether the following sentence is grammatically correct: " If you would have answered your phone, you would know smth.." [duplicate]
I ran into this sentence while watching a TV show.
Context: One person tried to call another person, but the latter didn't answer. So the first person came to the other and said as mentioned above.
In ...
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Is "should" in if-clause common in the USA?
I was wondering if the "should" in if-clause is commonly used nowadays, or if it's kinda outdated. E.g.,
If you should meet him, tell him he owes me.
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Is there a term for use of "would" conditional to indicate lack of precision?
In the Northern Irish dialect, a speaker can say
You see, I would have been very shy, and his encouragement really
helped me.
Here, the "would have been" is used to indicate that the ...
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Is this correct to use would twice in if-then sentence? [duplicate]
Would it be grammatically correct if I would say: (see what I did there? :))
If I would be X >then< Y.
E.g.: If I would be born in US I would be happier.
("then" is redundant so I ...
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What's the meaning of "if" in this sentence?
“I have enormous faith and confidence in Merritt Paulson, who’s built from scratch one of the great sports teams, in any sport, in our country, if not throughout North America,” Garber said in ...
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Confusion with 'Would" [duplicate]
What could be the possible meaning of the sentence?: "If you would agree to my conditions, I would give you compensation."
I would highly appreciate your response.
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Is it appropriate to follow the comma of an 'if' conditional with 'this'?
Looking for some guidance on the appropriate way to structure an 'if' conditional.
The three examples we have on how to write a conditional:
If you were to leave your windows open, this could make it ...
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Can Irrealis 'Were' Be Used in the Past Tense?
By reading The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language, I have managed to gain an understanding of remote conditionals. My research has demonstrated that irrealis 'were' is ordinarily used in remote ...
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The subjunctive in a hypothetical scenario of a historical event
To the prompt "What historical moment would you like to have participated in?", my ESL student chose a Queen Live Aid concert, saying:
I’m a huge fan of Queen and Freddie Mercury so I think ...
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Why past tense for unreal present? [closed]
I was wondering why exactly past tense is used in the unreal present conditional (type 2).
I once heard that past tense gives a sense of "distance" when contrasted with present, but I'm not ...
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Why is "until" incorrect?
Choose between:
The school will close **unless** it stops snowing soon.
The school will close **until** it stops snowing soon.
Just to be clear, "soon" is a given, and it does not refer to ...
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Past Tense after "if" [duplicate]
“A letter?” repeated Professor McGonagall faintly, sitting back down on the wall. “Really, Dumbledore, you think you can explain all this in a letter? These people will never understand him! He’ll be ...
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Could I replace "if" with "that“ in "the only way is if...."?
"We're the world's oldest democracy, and the only way that can come unraveled is if we have disrespect for institutions that lead to Americans turning on Americans," he said.
What's the way?...
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“Would not have” + past participle in a real reflection [closed]
Here is the situation:
If there had been an apple, I wouldn’t have eaten it.
...is understood to mean:
There wasn’t an apple; I therefore didn’t eat it.
Building on this, can we use the imaginary ...
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Role of "otherwise" in conditional sentences
I have a question about this test question:
Chemotherapy given at the same time as radiation therapy can help patients with a certain type of lung cancer live nearly 50 percent longer than they .........
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Using two if-part in a sentence
I've found a sentence and don't understand the grammar here. It's the first time I've seen two if conditions in one sentence.
Can anybody explain what it was and what grammar was used in the sentence?
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Real Conditional Clause + Present Unreal Main Clause [closed]
Is it grammatical to say these four sentences?
If I have studied it for four years, I should be good at it.
If I had studied it for four years, I should be good at it.
If I have been studying it ...
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"IF" CLAUSES and the use of WERE [duplicate]
I found this example in The Guardian: If there were ever a time to join us, it is now.
Ruling out it is a hypothesis, I found it hard to understand the use of were in the sentence. Can somebody ...
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Why use subjunctive mood in 'all the force would be transferred back to the ship'?
When reading a discussion about whether the Titanic could have avoided sinking, I saw a sentence that puzzled me a lot, as following:
– it would probably have survived. [When a ship hits an iceberg ...
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How to use the subjunctive mood here, where it seems like it might mix subjunctive and not subjunctive?
In the following sentence, how should the "to be" verbs be conjugated since the sentence is in the subjunctive mood?
If it went over their heads once, then they’d soon forget what it was ...
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If + Past Simple + Future Simple [closed]
I have come across the following quotation:
If you knew how quickly people forget the dead... you will stop living to impress people.
Do you think that there is a mistake here, and the word 'would' ...
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Purpose of conditional in context
What is the purpose of the conditional here?
It is often said that mathematics is the language of science. If this is true, then an essential part of the language of mathematics is numbers.
That ...
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Missing conditionals
When we talk about Unreal Past using The Third Conditional we know what really happened.
Example:
"If I hadn't had a lot of money, I wouldn't have gone with her that summer and we wouldn't be ...
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Is this tense usage correct, "you'll continue acting"?
if you'll continue acting like...
I understand "if you continue to act like..." seems more logical, but is there a fault in the first sentence? I am focusing on the "act" part. ...
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Commas in an if, or, then statement
For example, do I need the commas in the following sentence?
If you use spectacles, or if you think you will require them within the next year or so, inform your supervisor.
To me, this reads better ...
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Can a conditional sentence begin with "when"? [closed]
I would want to dispel my doubts about the grammaticality of the following sentence:
When Andrew is there, he will probably have to be helped to climb the stairs.
Some context: I know for certain ...
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