Conditional sentences

Question

Are the following conditional sentences referring to something that could happen any time or only in the future or only in the past?

If you saw him, would you tell him?
If the alarm went off, there’s a fire somewhere in the building.
If it rained tomorrow, people will dance in the street.
If I won the lottery, I would buy a big house.
She would travel all over the world, if she were rich.
She would pass the exam, if she ever studied.
If I was/were speaking, you would not be allowed to interrupt like that.
Would it be better if I didn’t do it?

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

healer
Are the following conditional sentences referring to something that could happen any time or only in the future or only in the past? In the nutshell, yes. There are four types of conditionals. The speaker needs to determine what he is trying to convey when he is making the conditional statement.
This conditional table should help you clear up some of the questions.

Zero General truths Simple present
Type 1 A possible condition and its probable result Simple present
Type 2 A hypothetical condition and its probable result Simple past
Type 3 An unreal past condition and its probable result in the past Past perfect

If you saw him, would you tell him? Type2.The speaker convey a sense of remote possibility but in case.
If the alarm went off, there’s a fire somewhere in the building.Type2
If it rained tomorrow, people will dance in the street. Type2
If I won the lottery, I would buy a big house. Type2
She would travel all over the world, if she were rich. Type 2
She would pass the exam, if she ever studied. This should be a type 3 conditional because it is counter-factual: She took the exam and failed. Grammatically, the sentence is correct, but it is not a proper type 3 conditioanl sentence. The proper form should be" She would have passsed the exam if she had studied a litle harder"
If I was/were speaking, you would not be allowed to interrupt like that.Type 2
Would it be better if I didn’t do it? Type 2
Extra thoughts: Most of the conditional we use on the daily basis are basically type 1 and 2 and some may mix between the 2, whether we knowingly apply it or not. For example: if I said, " The rain spell is getting to me. If the weather cleared out tomorrow, I definitely would go fishing" I am using type 2 to convey an unlikely possibility and my desire for the sun and fishing.

Conditional sentences

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