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Ivanhr Posted 16 years ago
Grammar

Conditional

Hi,

1.If he took my advice he did the right thing.

2. If he took my advice he will do the right thing.

How do I call this usage of conditional?
  

Top answer

If we want to dig deep into the conditionals and subjunctives, they can get confusing and messy. But focusing on the 3 types of conditional alone, both sentences do not have the right mixes in their elements to be qualified as conditionals as they lack the basic conditional requirements. For # 1 to be grammatically qualified as a conditional, the context must comply to one of the 3 types of conditional Forms.

— Dimsumexpress

  • If we want to dig deep into the conditionals and subjunctives, they can get confusing and messy.
  • But focusing on the 3 types of conditional alone, both sentences do not have the right mixes in their elements to be qualified as conditionals as they lack the basic conditional requirements.
  • For # 1 to be grammatically qualified as a conditional, the context must comply to one of the 3 types of conditional Forms.
  • If he took my advice, he would do the right thing.
  • Or a type 3, past perfect conditional: If John had paid a little more attention to his wife, she probably wouldn't have run off with his friend.
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27 Answers
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If we want to dig deep into the conditionals and subjunctives, they can get confusing and messy. But focusing on the 3 types of conditional alone, both sentences do not have the right mixes in their elements to be qualified as conditionals as they lack the basic conditional requirements.

For # 1 to be grammatically qualified as a conditional, the context must comply to one of the 3 type
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Not all conditional sentences fit the 3 basic conditional types. I see nothing wrong with those sentences.
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IvanhrHow do I call this usage of conditional?
You mean "first", "second", and "third"? Neither of your sentences follow any of those three patterns. Is that what you wanted to know?

CJ
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CalifJim
IvanhrHow do I call this usage of conditional?
You mean "first", "second", and "third"? Neither of your sentences follow any of those three patterns. Is that what you wanted to know?

CJ


I understand that there are many conditional sentences that don't fit the pattern of either of the three basic types
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Ivanhr
So, how do you feel about the sentences I posted and would you ever use them?


IvanhrWhy aren't they dealt with in grammar books?
While CJ is probably sleeping like a baby, I would take a shot at replying your question.

I personally think that if we have to find an explanation for every q
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Hi dimsum,

I posted that question to provoke discussion. I could have written

If he had taken my advice he would have done the right thing. (this indicates a missed opportunity)

The sentence "If he took my advice he did the right thing" allows for the possibility that the advice was taken.

You can't use any of the three basic conditional types to express this i
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IvanhrIf he took my advice he did the right thing"

Ivan,

This is incorrect, becasue the first part and the second are mismatched in terms of their moods.

One can not take the rules and start bending it to his interpretation.

Also, you need a comma after advice.
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Would you, please, comment on this article.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conditional_sentence

The article does contain a few sentences similar to mine and I would like to hear what you think. Conditionals can be sometimes
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Well, as I said in the previous post, when you dig deep into the conditionals, it can get messy. I have no comment on those sentences which you called similar. As the name suggests, "conditional" is context and situation dependent. What may seem grammatical in one context may not apply to another condition.

How does this sound to you?

If you took the direction I gave you, you
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dimsumexpress
How does this sound to you?

If you took the direction I gave you, you got home.

It sounds weird; doesn't it?


To me , it sounds weird only because of the 'you'. (you're talking to him now so there's no need for guessing)

If it were he/she/Mark etc it would be fine, I think.

If he took the directions I
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