Conditionals type 1, 2, and 3
Type 1: real future; Type 2: unreal present; Type 3: unreal past.
A — Sample sentences
Words like government, election, vote, policy, tax, parliament, and candidate.
1) Type 1 — real future possibility
If + present simple, will + verb.
- If the government reduces tax, people will have more money.
- If more citizens vote, the result will be fairer.
- If the party wins the election, they will change healthcare policy.
- If taxes increase, many families will struggle.
2) Type 2 — unreal or unlikely present
If + past simple, would + verb.
- If I were prime minister, I would invest more in education.
- If the opposition had more power, they would support public services.
- If every candidate were honest, politics would be simpler.
- If the government provided cheaper housing, fewer people would protest.
3) Type 3 — unreal past (too late to change)
If + past perfect, would have + past participle.
- If the government had reduced tax last year, the economy would have grown faster.
- If more people had voted, the result would have been different.
- If the party had won, they would have increased healthcare spending.
- If the leader had listened to experts, the policy would have worked better.
The rest of this lesson is in the General English course:
- B — Quick reference
Try it: Type 1, 2, or 3?
Choose the best form.
- If the candidate wins, she ___ more money in schools.
(a) will invest (b) would invest (c) would have invested - If I ___ in parliament, I would vote against the tax rise.
(a) am (b) were (c) had been - If the government ___ earlier, unemployment would have fallen.
(a) acts (b) acted (c) had acted - If taxes fall, families ___ more on healthcare.
(a) will spend (b) would spend (c) would have spent
Check your answers in the course — it marks them instantly. This is one of the unit's 4 exercises; the other 3 are in the General English course too.
Practise this unit in the course →