Conditional
Sentences
Day 1: Type 0 and
Type 1
What happens if you
put ice in the sun? (Type 0)
What will happen if
you do not study hard? (Type 1)
What would happen if
you were a millionaire? (Type 2)
What would have
happened if you had not used i-Learner? (Type
3)
A conditional
sentence is used to describe two actions which have reason-and-result
relationship, e.g. If you go now, you will see her at the airport. It is composed of two parts ?
an
if-clause ?f you go now?
and a main
clause ?you will see her
at the airport.
If action A would
result in action B, then you would put action A in the if-clause (if you go now)
and action B (you will see her at the airport) in the main
clause.
The basic structure
of conditional sentence is: If action A (happens), action B (happens). You may wonder why we put the word
appens?in brackets. It is
because we have to use different tenses in
different situations.
There are altogether
four types of
conditional sentences, namely Types 0, 1, 2, and 3.
Let start with the
Type 0 conditional sentence.
Type 0 is used to
describe facts. If action A has happened, action B must
happen.
The tenses that
should be used are:
If-clause: simple
present
Main clause: simple
present
Examples:
(1)
If I put
(simple present
tense) an ice cream in the
sun, it melts (simple present
tense).
Explanation: It is a
fact that ice cream melts in the sun.
(2)
If I put
a piece of paper in
a fire, it burns.
Explanation: It is a
fact that paper burns in a fire.
Type 1: Possible
Situations (可能發生的情況)
Type 1 conditionals
are used when action B is likely to
happen if action A has
happened. This is the most commonly used type.
The tenses that
should be used are:
If-clause: simple
present (即使說的是將來發生的事，也要用simple
preset)
Main clause: simple
future
Examples:
(1)
If the
weather is (simple present
tense) fine, we
will go (simple future)
on a picnic.
Explanation: It is
just a possibility, it is not a fact.
(2)
If you go to
classroom 3A, you will see her.
Explanation: Again,
it is just a possibility, it is not a fact and it is not necessarily true ?you
might not be able to see her!