Lesson 9: Reason with conditionals

Choose time and reality first; conditional form follows.

~50 MINUTES · HYPOTHESIS AND CONSEQUENCE

Use two decisions

Ask: When is the condition? How real does the speaker present it? Traditional zero, first, second, and third labels describe common combinations, but time and reality explain them.

general        If water freezes, it expands.
open future    If testing passes, we will release.
imagined now   If testing passed today, we would release.
imagined past  If testing had passed, we would have released.

Past form creates distance

In If I knew, I would tell you, past form does not mean past time; it marks remote or imagined present. were can appear for all persons in formal hypothetical style: If I were you…

Mixed conditions cross time

If we had documented the system, maintenance would be easier now. Past condition, present result. If she were more cautious, she would not have approved it yesterday. Present characteristic, past result.

Controlled practice

  1. Make a general rule about sleep and concentration.
  2. Make an open future condition about tomorrow.
  3. Make an imagined present alternative to current reality.
  4. Make an imagined past alternative and result.
  5. Build a past-condition/present-result mixed conditional.
  6. Correct: “If it will rain, we will cancel.”
  7. Correct: “If I would know, I would tell you.”
  8. Explain difference: “If she calls” vs “If she called.”
Check controlled answers
  1. Example: If people sleep enough, they concentrate better.
  2. If the supplier replies tomorrow, we will decide.
  3. If I had more time now, I would study pronunciation.
  4. If I had left earlier, I would have caught the train.
  5. If we had tested earlier, the system would be stable now.
  6. If it rains, we will cancel.
  7. If I knew, I would tell you.
  8. Calls presents open future; called presents a more remote imagined possibility.

Shortcut that works

Draw 2 labels before sentence: condition time and result time; then mark each as open or imagined. Form becomes consequence, not formula.

Production lab

Retrieval practice

Your win: six connected conditions moving across general, open, imagined present, imagined past, and mixed meanings.

Primary source

Complete British Council zero, first, second, third, and mixed conditional lessons; explain answers through time and reality.

Ask your teaching agent to name a reality, then make you express increasingly remote alternatives.

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