Second Conditional
The second conditional is used to imagine present or future situations that are impossible or unlikely in reality.
- If we had a garden, we could grow flowers and vegetables.
- If I won a lot of money, I’d buy a big house by the sea.
- I wouldn’t so lazy if I were you.
The structure is usually: (if + past simple) + (would/could/might+ infinitive)
When if is followed by the verb be, it is grammatically correct to say if I were, if he were, if she were and if it were. However, it is also common to hear these structures with was, especially in the he/she form.
- If I were you, I wouldn’t say it.
- If she was prime minister, she would invest more money in schools.
- He would travel more if he was younger.
Do the exercises to have practice in using second conditional.
Exercise 1. Put the verb into the correct tense to make the second conditional.
- If I _________________ (be) you, I _________________ (get) a new job.
- If he _________________ (be) younger, he _________________ (travel) more.
- If we _________________ (not / be) friends, I _________________ (be) angry with you.
- If I _________________ (have) enough money, I _________________ (buy) a big house.
- If she _________________ (not / be) always so late, she _________________ (be) promoted.
- If we _________________ (win) the lottery, we _________________ (travel) the world.
- If you _________________ (have) a better job, we _________________ (be) able to buy a new car.
- If I _________________ (speak) perfect English, I _________________ (have) a good job.
- If we _________________ (live) in Mexico, I _________________ (speak) Spanish.
- If she _________________ (pass) the exam, she _________________ (be) able to enter university.
- She _________________ (be) happier if she _________________ (have) more friends.
- We _________________ (buy) a house if we _________________ (decide) to stay here.
- They _________________ (have) more money if they _________________ (not /buy) so many clothes.
- We _________________ (come) to dinner if we _________________ (have) time.
- She _________________ (call) him if she _________________ (know) his number.
- They _________________ (go) to Spain on holiday if they _______________ (like) hot weather.
- She _________________ (pass) the exam if she _________________ (study) more.
- I _________________ (marry) someone famous if I _________________ (be) a movie star.
- We never _________________ (be) late again if we _________________ (buy) a new car.
- You _________________ (lose) weight if you _________________ (eat) less.
Exercise 2. Match the first part of the sentence on the left with the correct ending on the right.
1. If I were hungry… ________ A. if I were bald.
2. If I were thirsty… ________ B. if the neighbors were very noisy.
3. I would go to the dentist… ________ C. I would take it again.
4. I would buy a wig… ________ D. if I came to work late again.
5. I would quit my job… ________ E. I would eat something.
6. If I saw a bad car accident… ________ F. if I had to work overtime every day.
7. I would move… ________ G. I would move to Mexico.
8. If I spoke Spanish… ________ H. I would make some lemonade.
9. If I failed the course… ________ I. I would call an ambulance.
10. The boss would fire me… ________ J. if I had a toothache.
Exercise 3. Complete the following sentences with the correct tense of the verbs in the brackets to make second conditional.
- If I _________________ (be) you, I _________________ (not/go) to that restaurant. The food is terrible.
- She __________________ (be) at work today if she ________________ (not/have) such a bad headache.
- If he _______________ (not/go) to bed so late every night, he _________________ (not/be) so tired every day.
- If you ________________ (not/live) so far away from me, I ___________________ (visit) you every weekend.
- Sophia _________________ (not/marry) Andrew if she _________________________ (not/love)him.
- Betty __________________ (go) to the party if her baby ________________________ (not/be) sick.
- If I ___________________ (not/be) on a diet, I ________________(eat) a piece of your chocolate cake.
- I _____________________(not/take) the bus to school if I _________________ (live) closer.
- If I ____________________ (drink) coffee in the evening, I _________________ (not/be able) to sleep.
- I ________________ (buy) that computer if it __________________ (not/be) so expensive.
- If I ____________________ (not/have) such a bad cold, I __________________ (not/be) in bed now.
- If you ___________________ (not/have) your sales receipt, the store ____________________ (not/give) you your money back.
- If you _______________ (not/give) the taxi driver a tip, he __________________ (be) angry.
- If I ____________________ (not/have to) work tonight, I ____________________ (go) to the football game with you.
Exercise 4. Choose the correct verb tense in each of the following sentences.
1. If I were hungry, I __________________________ a sandwich.
2. I would buy a new car if I __________________________ more money.
3. If he __________________________ his homework everyday, he would get better marks.
4. If our parents were here, they __________________________ us what to do.
5. I would help her if she __________________________ me.
6. If I found a $20 dollar bill on the street, I __________________________ it.
7. I __________________________ to your party on Saturday if I didn’t have to work.
8. I would call them if I __________________________ their telephone number.
Exercise 5. Read the following situations and then give advice using the second condition.
Example: Your friend eats a lot of junk food and sweets and then complains that he is fat. Your advice: If you ate healthier food, you wouldn’t have a problem with your weight/ you wouldn’t be overweight/you would be slimmer.
- Andrea doesn’t pay attention in class. Then she doesn’t understand the homework.
- Bob is always late because he doesn’t wear a watch.
- Maria is not a good tennis player because she never practices.
- Father always burns the dinner because he doesn’t set the timer on the oven.
- Johnny’s mom often gets mad at Johnny because he doesn’t pick up his toys.
- Ben gets a lot of speeding tickets because he drives too fast.
- Andrew coughs a lot because he smokes.
- Betty can never take a vacation because she spends all her money on new clothes.
- Kevin doesn’t get good grades because he doesn’t study much.
- Claire doesn’t feel good because she doesn’t exercise.
Exercise 6. What would you do and how would you feel? Answer the following questions using the second condition.
- What would you do if you saw someone having a heart attack?
- What would you do if a fire broke out in your house or apartment?
- How would you feel if you went to a party and you were the only one who didn’t bring a present?
- What would you do if you were lying in bed late at night and you heard someone trying to break into your house? How
would you feel? - What would you do if your neighbors had noisy parties every week-end?
- How would you feel if your landlord told you that you had to move out of your apartment in one week? What would you do?
- How would you feel if your teacher told you that you were going to have a big exam tomorrow? What would you do?
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