Second conditional in English
Online language lessons with native teachers
Skype teachers
Free trial lesson
Flexible appointments
Second conditional in English
In this chapter you will learn about the second conditional in English. This conditional is used to express a hypothetical situation.
Lesson Outline
Hide- 1.Definition and usage of the second conditional
- 2.Second conditional structure
- 3.The second conditional consists of two clauses, the 'if clause' and the 'main clause'. The structure of the second conditional begins with the word 'if' followed by a past simpe tense that establishes the condition, which is the 'if clause'. The 'if clause' is followed by the 'main clause' which describes the result with 'would + infinitive'.
- 4.Modal verbs and conditional sentences
- 5.Exercises
- 5.1.Fill in the second conditional in English
- 5.2.Choose the correct second conditional in English
- 5.3.Exercise second conditional in English
- 5.4.Exercise to practice the English second conditional
Definition and usage of the second conditional
The second conditional refers to situation that is now or any time and is unreal. It is used to express a hypothetical condition and its possible result.
| Situation | Example |
|---|---|
| To express a hypothetical situation |
|
| To expose wishes or dreams |
|
| To display warnings, advice or offer help |
|
In the second conditional, it is correct to use 'If I / he / she / it were' instead of 'If I / he / she / it was'.
Have a question?
Take online language lessons with a professional teacher
- Native & verified teachers
- Free trial lesson
- Learning materials included
Second conditional structure
The second conditional consists of two clauses, the 'if clause' and the 'main clause'. The structure of the second conditional begins with the word 'if' followed by a past simpe tense that establishes the condition, which is the 'if clause'. The 'if clause' is followed by the 'main clause' which describes the result with 'would + infinitive'.
Structure: If + past simple + would + infinitive.
| If clause (condition) | Main clause (result) |
|---|---|
| If you went to bed earlier, | you would not be so tired. |
| If she spoke Spanish, | she would be working in Spain. |
Modal verbs and conditional sentences
Other modal verbs, such as 'could' or 'might' can be used instead of 'would' in the second conditional tense. These modal verbs change the possibility and meaning of the sentence.
Examples:
- I could travel with you if I had more money.
- If I knew more about computers, I could fix your laptop.
- I might buy a bigger house if I earned more money.
Train your skills by doing the exercises below!
Exercises
Fill in the second conditional in English
Choose the correct second conditional in English
Exercise second conditional in English
Exercise to practice the English second conditional
Practise with a private teacher on Skype!
4.6/5 from 3 reviews
- Private Skype lessons
- Learn any topic
- Flexible appointments
I speak: Bosnian, Croatian, English, Italian, Portuguese, International, Russian, Serbian, Spanish, Turkish I teach: Bosnian, Croatian, English, Italian, Portuguese, International, Russian, Serbian, Spanish, Turkish
Me as a Teacher I am a Serbian native speaker and a language teacher. I have been teaching online for 5 years. I live in Belgrade. I've been... teaching online for 5 years (officially). I love teaching because it's a dynamic and an interesting job. You can teach your students and you can learn from them as well. The happiness and joy of the student + their progresses with their target language = my biggest prize (so my students are the ones who motivate me to work better)and I try to combine: a bit of reading, a bit of writing, a bit of conversation, a bit of grammar and a bit of listening by using different resources. About Me My favorite topics are: 1. Travelling , 2. Foreign languages, 3. TV programs, 4. Films and TV series, 5. Culture, 6. sport, 7. IT, 8. Science My hobbies are: learning foreign languages, horse- riding, reading, travelling, ... I am open-minded, flexible and very positive. If you come up with something interesting to talk about, please, don't hesitate to suggest me and I'll gladly discuss with you about that. I visited: Montenegro, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Slovakia and Slovenia. My Lessons & Teaching Style Firstly, I test the level of the target language... I have two parts: 1) Conversational part (here I check their vocabulary and their fluency + I find out their language goals and their needs) 2) Writing part (with that I focus much more on grammar and spelling) For each part, I take notes (I have my notebook for that). Secondly, I personalize my lessons to their goals and needs. I can cover a lot of topics: business, travelling, culture, etc. My Teaching Material Text Documents Audio Recordings Images and Visuals Video News Articles and Magazines Quizzes Example Test Templates Graphs and Charts Homework Assignments PowerPoint Presentations Read more
Availability: Monday (7-23h), Tuesday (7-23h), Wednesday (7-23h), Thursday (7-23h), Friday (7-23h), Saturday (7-23h), Sunday (7-23h).
Timezone: Europe/Belgrade (GMT+1)
See in your timezone.
12.00€ / h
Response time: less than a few hours
I speak: Bulgarian, English I teach: Bulgarian, English
Hi there, I am glad to meet you. First of all, let me congratulate you on the decision to learn or improve a new language. In your case this is... Bulgarian. My country, Bulgaria, is a beautiful country with nice and hospitable people. It is an ancient land with a great history and rich culture. Having learned our language you will be able to get in touch freely with our good people and country. I come from the town of Vidin, Bulgaria. I am a qualified English and Bulgarian teacher. I graduated back in 1972 from Sofia University with an MA in English Philology and Bulgarian Philology as a second subject. Since then I have spent most of my professional career teaching Bulgarian students. First of all, we will have a 20-30-minute trial lesson during which we can get to know each other, set expectations towards the lessons and schedule the timetable. The next step is simple - we start learning the language of your choice! Cannot wait to meet you and help you on your journey to learn Bulgarian. Read more
Availability: Monday (7-24h), Tuesday (7-24h), Wednesday (7-24h), Thursday (7-24h), Friday (7-24h), Saturday (7-24h), Sunday (7-24h).
Timezone: Europe/Sofia (GMT+2)
See in your timezone.
Great choice! Students book in average more than 10 lessons!
12.00€ / h
Response time: less than a few hours
I speak: English, German I teach: English
Hello, my name is Corinne and I am a qualified ESL English teacher from England. I have been teaching in classrooms and online for over 2 years... and I have many satisfied students. My lessons generally consist of a mixture of conversation and set exercises to help to improve both vocabulary and grammar. I encourage a lot of talking from my students and I give instant written correction so that they are able to recognize any grammatical errors they are making. I take note of repeated mistakes and set exercises for following lessons to address these mistakes accordingly. You will quickly notice an increase in your confidence in speaking English from our lessons, your vocabulary will increase and your grammar and sentence structure will improve. Together, we will reach your goals. Read more
Availability: Monday (9-12h), Monday (16-19h), Tuesday (9-12h), Tuesday (17-19h), Thursday (9-12h), Thursday (17-19h), Friday (9-12h), Friday (16-19h).
Timezone: Europe/Berlin (GMT+1)
See in your timezone.
Great choice! Students book in average more than 10 lessons!
Very experienced teacher!
Very experienced teacher!
18.00€ / h
Response time: less than a few hours