0
Df2006 Posted 19 years ago
Grammar
Third Conditional
I saw the following third conditional sample sentences from an educational webpage:
1. If I had not gone to university in Spain, I would not be bilingual.
2. If you had attended the training seminar, you would be familiar with the new operational procedures.
3. If we had not felt we could trust each other, we would not be partners.
4. If we had ordered the equipment last week, they would be here now.
Please can anyone confirm if these are correct?
I always thought the verb pattern for third conditionals should be:
(if clause) past perfect tense; (main clause) would/could/should + have + past participle
For example:
1. If I had not gone to university in Spain, I would not have been bilingual.
2. If you had attended the training seminar, you would have been familiar with the new operational procedures.
3. If we had not felt we could trust each other, we would not have been partners.
4. If we had ordered the equipment last week, they would have been here now.
Thank you very much.
1. If I had not gone to university in Spain, I would not be bilingual.
2. If you had attended the training seminar, you would be familiar with the new operational procedures.
3. If we had not felt we could trust each other, we would not be partners.
4. If we had ordered the equipment last week, they would be here now.
Please can anyone confirm if these are correct?
I always thought the verb pattern for third conditionals should be:
(if clause) past perfect tense; (main clause) would/could/should + have + past participle
For example:
1. If I had not gone to university in Spain, I would not have been bilingual.
2. If you had attended the training seminar, you would have been familiar with the new operational procedures.
3. If we had not felt we could trust each other, we would not have been partners.
4. If we had ordered the equipment last week, they would have been here now.
Thank you very much.
Top answer
Hi, The first examples are mixed conditionals. The first part is in the third conditional, because it talks about something that didn't happen in the past. The second part is in the second conditional, because it talks about something hypothetical in the present.
- Hi, The first examples are mixed conditionals.
- The first part is in the third conditional, because it talks about something that didn't happen in the past.
- The second part is in the second conditional, because it talks about something hypothetical in the present.
- If the second part (the result) was in the past, we would need a third conditional.
- For example: Third conditional: If I had gone to bed early last night, I wouldn't have been tired.
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
2 Answers
0
Hi,
The first examples are mixed conditionals. The first part is in the third conditional, because it talks about something that didn't happen in the past. The second part is in the second conditional, because it talks about something hypothetical in the present. If the second part (the result) was in the past, we would need a third conditional.
For example:
Third condit
The first examples are mixed conditionals. The first part is in the third conditional, because it talks about something that didn't happen in the past. The second part is in the second conditional, because it talks about something hypothetical in the present. If the second part (the result) was in the past, we would need a third conditional.
For example:
Third condit
00
Hi,
A very minor note.
If we had ordered the equipment last week, it would be here now.
Clive
A very minor note.
If we had ordered the equipment last week, it would be here now.
Clive
0
Related Questions