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CONDITIONALS – The Third Conditional

We make the third conditional by using ‘if’ and past perfect then ‘would have’ and the past participle in the second part of the sentence:

if + past perfect, would + have + past participle

would + have + past participle if + past perfect

The Third Conditional is UNREAL. It talks about the past. It’s used to describe a situation that didn’t happen, and to imagine the hypothetical result of that situation.

  • If she had studied, she would have passed the exam (but she didn’t study and she didn’t pass)
  • If I hadn’t eaten so much, I wouldn’t have felt sick (but I did, and I do).
  • If it had rained, you would have gotten wet. (but it didn’t, so I’m dry)
  • You would have passed your exam if you had worked harder. (but you didn’t work harder so, you failed)
  • I would have believed you if you hadn’t lied to me before. (but you did lie to me before, so I cant possibly believe you now)
  • If we had taken a taxi, we wouldn’t have missed the plane. (but we didn’t take a taxi and we missed the plane)
  • She wouldn’t have been tired if she had gone to bed earlier. (but guess why she was tired!!)
  • She would have become an engineer if she had gone to university. (no university, didn’t become an engineer)
  • He would have been on time for the interview if he had left the house at nine. ( He was late because…)

The Third Conditional

The third conditional is used to talk about hypothetical or unreal situations in the past and their hypothetical results.  (if clause in past perfect, main clause in would have + past participle).

1 / 12

If she had known about the party, she ___.

2 / 12

If I had studied harder, I ___ the exam.

3 / 12

If they had left earlier, they ___ the train.

4 / 12

If we had booked in advance, we ___ a better hotel.

5 / 12

If he had listened to the advice, he ___ in trouble.

6 / 12

If she had studied abroad, she ___ fluent in French.

7 / 12

If I had known you were coming, I ___ dinner.

8 / 12

If they had invited us, we ___ to the party.

9 / 12

If he had taken the job offer, he ___ happier.

10 / 12

If we had arrived on time, we ___ the opening ceremony.

11 / 12

If you had followed the recipe, the cake ___ better.

12 / 12

If it hadn't rained, we ___ a picnic in the park.

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