How to use conditionals in English: zero, first, second, Another way to make first conditional sentences is to use ‘unless’

which means ‘only if’ or ‘except’. As with ‘if’, the word ‘unless’ can
third and mixed. never be followed by ‘will’ but only by the present simple. For
example:
Making conditional sentences is an everyday part of your native
language, and introducing them to your English conversation can
Unless you hurry up, you won’t catch the bus.
really improve your level of communication. There are four
I’ll carry on doing this work, unless my boss tells me to do something
conditionals in total and you will learn to use them gradually,
else.
obviously starting with the most basic ones – the zero and first
We’ll stay at home unless the weather improves.
conditional. To have a general idea of how all the conditionals work,
take a look at this overview so you can start to get an idea of what
they are and when we use them. The Second Conditional
What is a Conditional Sentence? We use the second conditional to talk about improbable or
impossible situations in the present or future. Here is the structure:
A conditional sentence is based on the word ‘if’. There are always
two parts to a conditional sentence – one part beginning with ‘if’ to
describe a possible situation, and the second part which describes
the consequence. For example:

If it rains, we’ll get wet.

We can also invert the two parts of a conditional sentence so that For example:
the ‘if’ part comes second, and this is especially common in If I had more time, I’d exercise more. (But I don’t have more time so I
questions. For example: don’t.)
What will you do if you miss the train? If I were rich, I’d spend all my time travelling. (But I’m not rich so I
How can you finish the project if you don’t have a computer? can’t.)
What happens if the students don’t pass an exam? If she saw a snake, she’d be terrified.
If he didn’t have to work late, he could go out with his girlfriend.
There are four types of conditional sentences: What would you do if you were offered a job in Canada?
0 – The zero conditional You wouldn’t have to walk everywhere if you bought a bike.
1 – The first conditional
2 – The second conditional
3 – The third conditional A common expression used to give advice has the second
conditional structure. The expression is ‘If I were you, I’d..’, meaning
It is also possible to mix the second and third conditional. Let’s look ‘in your situation, this is what I would do’. For example:
at each conditional to see how we use them.
A: I’ve got a headache.
The Zero Conditional B: If I were you, I’d take an aspirin.
We use the zero conditional to talk about permanent truths, such as A: I don’t understand this.
scientific facts, and general habits. The structure is simple: B: If I were you, I’d ask your teacher for help.
A: This order won’t be delivered on time.
B: If I were you, I’d phone the customer to let them know.

The Third Conditional

We use the third conditional to talk about impossible situations, as in
the second conditional, in the past. We often use the third
conditional to describe regrets. The structure is:
Here are some examples:
If you heat water to 100°, it boils.
If you eat a lot, you put on weight.
If it doesn’t rain for a long time, the earth gets very dry.
If we go out with friends, we normally go to a restaurant.
If I’m tired, I go to bed early.

The First Conditional Here are some examples:

We use the first conditional to talk about a realistic situation in the If we had left earlier, we would have arrived on time.
present or future. The structure of the first conditional is as follows: If you hadn’t forgotten her birthday, she wouldn’t have been upset.
If they had booked earlier, they could have found better seats.
If I hadn’t learnt English, I wouldn’t have got this job.
What would you have studied if you hadn’t done engineering?
They wouldn’t have hired you if you hadn’t had some experience
abroad.
You could have helped me if you’d stayed later.

Mixed Conditionals
Here are some examples: It’s possible to combine the second and third conditional in one
If you’re free later, we can go for a walk. sentence when we want to make a hypothesis about the past that
If they’re hungry, I’ll make some sandwiches. has a consequence in the present. In this case, the structure is:
If you’re not back by 5pm, give me a ring.
If he studies hard, he’ll do well in the exam.
If we arrive late, we must get a taxi.
He’ll call if he needs help.
Take a break if you’re tired.
Here are some examples:
Como veis no es tan complicado y es cuestión simplemente de
If you’d studied harder, you’d be at a higher level now. recordar con qué tiempo va cada condicional.
We’d be lying on a beach now if we hadn’t missed the plane.
They’d have much more confidence if they hadn’t lost so many
ZERO IF + PRESENTE, PRESENTE
matches.
CONDITIONAL
What would you be doing now if you hadn’t decided to study?
FIRST IF + PRESENTE, WILL + INFINITIVO
Now you’ve seen all the English conditionals, start practicing by CONDITIONAL
using them whenever you can. Make some of your own examples
following the structure patterns written. If you practice, using SECOND IF + PASADO SIMPLE, WOULD +
conditionals will become easy! CONDITIONAL INFINITIVO

THIRD IF + PASADO PERFECTO, WOULD

Las formas condicionales en inglés CONDITIONAL HAVE + PARTICIPIO
‘ZERO’ CONDITIONAL

Es el que utilizamos para expresar «verdades absolutas«, cosas Podemos cambiar el orden de las partes de la oración, pero
que son siempre verdad. (Si llueve, te mojas) nunca mezclar los tiempos verbales. Es decir, podríamos poner la
Su estructura es muy sencilla: parte del IF al final de la frase, pero no mezclar el tiempo de una
IF + PRESENTE, PRESENTE proposición con el de la otra.
Ejemplos:
Ejemplos:
● If it rains, you get wet.
● If you heat water at 100ºC, it boils ● You WILL SEE the Big Ben, IF you COME to London.
A veces, podemos sustituir la conjunción IF por WHEN.
Ejemplos:

● If you WILL COME to London, you SEE the Big Ben.

● When I finish work late, I don’t cook dinner; We order ● You WOULD HAVE SEEN the Big Ben, IF you HAD
some food.
FIRST CONDITIONAL COME to London.
● If you WOULD HAVE COME to London, you HAD SEEN
Es el que utilizamos para hablar de situaciones en las que es
bastante probable que algo tenga lugar. Hay una posibilidad real
the Big Ben.
de que algo ocurra.

Si estás preparando los niveles básicos A2, B1, puedes dejar de leer
La estructura es la siguiente:
aquí. Si por el contrario te has propuesto alcanzar un nivel superior
IF + PRESENTE, WILL + INFINITIVO en inglés, sigue leyendo…¡empieza la «diversión»!
Imaginemos que nos vamos a vivir un año a Londres, y le
proponemos a un amigo que venga a visitarnos. Este amigo nos
dice que puede que sí pues tiene el dinero ahorrado y le hace FORMAS CONDICIONALES MIXTAS
mucha ilusión. En esta situación podríamos decirle a nuestro amigo:
Finalmente llegamos a la parte más compleja de la explicación. Las
formas condicionales mixtas en inglés. Si estás preparando tu
● If you COME to London, you WILL SEE the Big Ben. (Si B2, sabes que estas formas son más frecuentes de lo que parece.
vienes a Londres, verás el Big Ben) Vamos a ver principalmente dos formas condicionales mixtas:
SECOND CONDITIONAL

Es el que utilizamos para hablar de situaciones en las que hay ● La que se refiere a una situación que ocurrió en el
pocas posibilidades de que algo ocurra, aunque aún así es pasado que tiene una consecuencia en el presente.
posible. Aquí estamos mezclando el TERCER y el SEGUNDO
condicional. Ejemplo:
La estructura es: ○ If I HAD PASSED my driving test last year, I
IF + PASADO SIMPLE, WOULD + INFINITIVO WOULD BE driving a car now.
Imaginemos la misma situación que antes, pero en este caso La estructura de esta forma condicional mixta es:
nuestro amigo nos dice que no cree que pueda ir a visitarnos, IF + PAST PERFECT, WOULD + INFINITIVO
porque sus padres no le dejan, no tiene el dinero, etc. En este otro
caso, podríamos decirle a nuestro amigo:
● La que se refiere a una situación de presente que pudo
tener una consecuencia en el pasado. Aquí estamos
● If you CAME to London, you WOULD SEE the Big Ben. (Si mezclando el SEGUNDO y el TERCER condicional.
vinieras a Londres, verías el Big Ben) Ejemplo:
THIRD CONDITIONAL ○ If I DIDN’T HAVE so much work to do, I WOULD
HAVE GONE with you to the party.
Es el que utilizamos para hablar de situaciones que ya es imposible La estructura de esta forma condicional mixta es:
que tengan lugar.
IF + PAST SIMPLE, WOULD HAVE + PARTICIPIO
La estructura ya se nos complica un poco:
IF + PASADO PERFECTO, WOULD HAVE + PARTICIPIO
Imaginemos ahora que en la misma situación que venimos utilizando
para los otros dos condicionales, ya hemos vuelto de Londres tras
un año de trabajo, y nuestro amigo finalmente, no vino a vernos.
Cuando nos reencontramos con él, podríamos decirle:

● If you HAD COME to London, you WOULD HAVE SEEN

the Big Ben. (Si hubieses venido a Londres, habrías visto
el Big Ben)