What is a Conditional Sentence?
A conditional sentence is based on the word ‘if’. There are always two parts to a conditional
sentence – one part beginning with ‘if’ to describe a possible situation, and the second part
which describes the consequence. For example:
If it rains, we’ll get wet.
We can also invert the two parts of a conditional sentence so that the ‘if’ part comes second,
and this is especially common in questions. For example:
What will you do if you miss the train?
How can you finish the project if you don’t have a computer?
What happens if the students don’t pass an exam?
There are four types of conditional sentences:
0 – The zero conditional
1 – The first conditional
2 – The second conditional
3 – The third conditional
It is also possible to mix the second and third conditional. Let’s look at each conditional to
see how we use them.
The Zero Conditional
We use the zero conditional to talk about permanent truths, such as scientific facts, and
general habits. The structure is simple:
Here are some examples:
If you heat water to 100°, it boils.
If you eat a lot, you put on weight.
If it doesn’t rain for a long time, the earth gets very dry.
If we go out with friends, we normally go to a restaurant.
