Conditionals
The first conditional has thepresent simpleafter 'if', then thefuture simplein the
other clause:
if + present simple, ... will + infinitive
It's used to talk about things which might happen in the future. Of course, we can't
know what will happen in the future, but this describes possible things, which could
easily come true.
If itrains, Iwon't goto the park.
If Istudytoday, I'll goto the party tonight.
If Ihaveenough money, I'll buysome new shoes.
She'll belate if the trainisdelayed.
She'll missthe bus if shedoesn't leavesoon.
If Iseeher, I'll tellher.
First vs. Zero Conditional:
The first conditional describes aparticularsituation, whereas thezero
conditionaldescribes what happensin general.
For example (zero conditional): if you sit in the sun, you get burned (here I'm talking
about every time a person sits in the sun - the burning is a natural consequence of
the sitting)
But (first conditional): if you sit in the sun, you'll get burned (here I'm talking about
what will happen today, another day might be different)
First vs. Second Conditional:
The first conditional describes things that I think are likely to happen in the future,
whereas the second conditional talks about things that I don't think will really
happen. It's subjective; it depends on my point of view.
For example (first conditional): If she studies harder, she'll pass the exam (I think
it's possible she will study harder and so she'll pass)
But (second conditional): If she studied harder, she would pass the exam (I think
that she won't study harder, or it's very unlikely, and so she won't pass)
