Second conditional

Second conditional

Could it be possible?

What is the "Second conditional"?

The second conditional is like the first conditional. We are still thinking about the future. We are thinking about a particular condition in the future, and the result of this condition. But there is not a real possibility that this condition will happen.

Notice that we are thinking about a future condition. We use the Simple Past tense to talk about the future condition. We use would + verb to talk about the future result. The important thing about the second conditional is that there is an unreal possibility that the condition will happen.

When do we use the second conditional ?

Sometimes, we use should, could or might instead of would, for example: If I won a million dollars, I could stop working.

If she slept well, She could be on time for the class.

I Should buy a new pair of shoes if I won the lottery!

If I were an alien, I would be able to travel around the universe.

What is the difference ?

Second conditional

First conditional

The second conditional describes something that is possible, but will almost certainly not happen.

vs

The first conditional describes something that is possible, and could really happen.

The condition goes in simple past tense and the result goes with would.

Remember: you can change the order of the sentence and it still have the same meaning.

If I ate less, I would lose weight.

I would lose weight if I ate less.

Thank you!