Uso del segundo condicional en inglés

second conditional in english

When is the second conditional used in English?

The first conditional is used to refer to what will happen in a certain situation. The second conditional too, but referring to situations that are NOT real, and what their consequences would or could be. Compare these two sentences: -If I get that job, I'll move to Toronto. -If I got that job, I'd move to Toronto. Both are correct and have a similar meaning, but in the first the speaker is more confident that he will get the job, while in the second he considers it more unlikely. This last sentence, with the second conditional, reveals that the speaker probably wants the job, but is not sure he will get it or perhaps has not even applied for it.

What rules must be taken into account?

Like all conditionals, the second conditional consists of two phrases or propositions: the one with the “if” and the main proposition.

Exceptions and variants

Since the second conditional deals with an unreal situation, we usually use the “were” form of the verb to be instead of the “was” form, even if we are speaking in the first or third person singular: -If I were less worried about the future, I'd enjoy life more. -If he were more careful, he wouldn't make so many mistakes. This is the subjunctive mood in English, which is used here because it deals with situations that are not real. It is also possible to replace would or wouldn't, in the main proposition, with could / couldn't or might / might not: -If I knew all the answers, I could easily pass the exam. -If he listened more, he might actually learn something. Both phrases focus more on the fact that the result is possible, rather than probable, so we can use them instead of would to express that less certainty.