In Second and Third Conditional Sentences the modal verbs could and might can be used.

with Real Condition

with Unreal Condition

First Conditional (Type I)

The action refers to the future

Second Conditional (Type II)

The action refers to the present or future

Third Conditional (Type III)

The action refers to the past

Subordinate Clause

Principal Clause

Subordinate Clause

Principal Clause

Subordinate Clause

Principal Clause

If + Present Simple /Pr. Cont. / Pr. Perf. / Present Perfect Continuous

Future / Imperative /

can/may/might/must/

should + bare

infinitive

If + Past Simple or Past Continuous or were/was

would/could/might + bare infinitive or the Future Indefinite in the Past

If + Past Perfect or Past Perfect Cont.

would/could/might

+ have +

past participle

or the Future

Perfect in the Past

1. If I am free tomorrow, I will help you. - Если я буду свободен завтра, я помогу тебе.

2. If the weather is nice, we will go on an excursion.

3. If you have a headache, take an aspirin.

4. If he calls, I’ll tell him the news. (but he might not call)

5. If you have done your homework, you can watch TV.

6. If they are studying. I won’t make any noise.

7. If I get paid today, I’ll treat you to a meal tonight.

8. If I finish the project on time, I may take a few days off.

9. If she hasn’t cooked dinner, we will order a takeaway.

10. If you can find my purse, I might buy you an ice-cream.

11. If you have never been to Wales, you should try to get there one day.

12. You may go away if it bothers you.

13. Please call me if you hear from Jane.

14. If it is fine tomorrow, ...

we can go to the beach. (= we are free to go to the beach.)

we could go to the beach. (= would be able to go to the beach.)

we may go to the beach (= it’s possible)

we might go to the beach. (= it’s possible)

we should go to the beach. (= it’s advisable)

we ought to go to the beach. (= it’s advisable)

we must go to the beach. (= it’s necessary)

15. If you need something from the fridge, help yourself.

16. If there isn’t a hotel, where will you stay?

17. I’ll take my umbrella in case it rains.

18. Unless you practise hard, you’ll never play the guitar well.

19. Unless you have finished before 5.00, I won’t be able to pick you up.

20. If you don’t leave now, you will miss / are going to miss / might miss the train.

21. If I stay till May, I will have been working here for 20 years.

22. Colloquial omission of ‘if’. An imperative can be used instead of an ‘if-clause’ in everyday speech: (or/or else/otherwise = иначе, или же, в противном случае)

Stop shouting, or / or else / otherwise you’ll wake up the neighbours. (= If you don’t stop shouting, you’ll wake up the neighbours.)

23. Go at once; otherwise you will miss your train. Идите немедленно, иначе опоздаете на поезд.

24. Don’t lose your money, or / or else / otherwise you won’t be able to get home. (= If you lose your money, you won’t be able to get home.)

25. Sit down, and I’ll make us a cup of tea.(= If you sit down, I’ll make us a cup of tea.)

Note the difference between imperative + or and imperative + and in threats:

Drop that gun, or I’ll shoot you! (i.e. If you don’t drop it, I’ll shoot you.)

Drop that parcel, and I’ll kill you. (i.e. If you do drop it, I’ll kill you.)

26. What will you do if you lose your job? - If I lose my job, I will go abroad.

1. If I were free tomorrow, I would help you. - Если бы я был свободен завтра, я бы помог тебе. (but I’m busy and won’t be able to help you)

2. If she had a lot of time, she would go on foot.

3. If I won a million dollars, I shouldn’t work.

4. If I were you, I would change a job. - На твоем месте я бы поменял работу.

If I were her/him,...

If I were in your shoes,....

If I were in your position,...

In your place I ...

5. If you were in my position, what would you do?

6. If I were you, I would attend a computer course.

7. If I were earning more money, we could buy a house by the sea.

8. You would get there in time if you went by taxi.

9. If I didn’t read newspapers, I wouldn’t know what was happening in the world.

10. If there were no television, people would go out more.

11. I would be very frightened if somebody pointed a gun at me.

12. If he didn’t eat so many sweets, he wouldn’t have a problem with his teeth. (but he eats a lot of sweets)

13. If I could live anywhere, I would choose Mexico City.

15. Many crimes could be prevented if the public took more care. - Многие преступления могли бы быть предотвращены, если бы общественность проявляла внимание.

16. If I had a big garden, I would grow a lot of flowers. ( = a definite consequence, = certainly - несомненно)

17. If I had a big garden, I could grow a lot of flowers. ( = possible, = I would be able to grow - смог бы вырастить)

18. If I had a big garden, I might grow a lot of flowers. ( = perhaps, = I would perhaps grow)

19. What would you do if you saw someone shoplifting?

20. If you needed help, who would you ask?

21. If I saved a little every week, I might be able to save up for a car.

22. I could buy some new clothes if I had some money.

23. If I had longer legs, I would be able to run faster.

24. I don’t really want to go to their party, but I probably will go. They would be offended if I didn’t go.

25. If it stopped raining, we could go out.

26. If you asked him nicely, he might agree.

27. What would you do now if you lost your job? - If I lost my job now, I would go abroad.

1. If I had been free yesterday, I would have helped you. - Если бы я был свободен вчера, я бы помог тебе. (but I was busy, therefore I didn’t help you)

2. If I had had the money yesterday, I would have bought a new car. (I had no money, therefore I didn’t buy a car)

3. We would have arrived sooner if we hadn’t lost our way.

4. If I hadn’t helped you last week, what would you have done?

5. If she had realized he was lonely, she would have called him.

6. I wouldn’t have cooked a vegetarian meal unless I had thought they were vegetarians.

7. You could have passed the exam if you had taken it. ( = You would have been able to pass the exam if ... )

8. If you had asked me, I might have said “Yes”. ( = I would perhaps have said “Yes”)

9. If I had not been wearing my seat belt, I might have hurt myself badly.

10. If I could have played tennis then, I would have taken part in the competition.

11. If you had told me you were coming, I would have prepared you a nice meal!

12. I could have seen a lot if I hadn’t had to leave Paris so soon.

13. If I had not got married, I would still have been living abroad.

14. If I could have stopped, there wouldn’t have been an accident.

15. We could have had a good time, if we had had the money

16. If I had been trying harder, I would have succeeded.

17. If I had been you/in your position/Jane, I would have accepted their offer.

18. If he had been listening, he might have heard what the teacher said.

19. If I had worked harder at school, I could have got a better job.

20. I wasn’t hungry. If I had been hungry, I would have eaten something.

21. Now we‘re lost! If you had written Mary’s directions, this would not have happened.

22. If I hadn’t borrowed your tools, I wouldn’t have been able to fix the car.

23. If you had gone through the red light, you might have hit another car.

24. It would have been better if you hadn’t talked to him like that.

25. What would you have done last year if you had lost your job? - If I had lost my job last year, I would have gone abroad.