Following Conditional Construction Following Conditional Construction Free Essays

ZERO CONDITIONAL A. Sample sentences If interest rates fall, company profits rise. If prices don’t go up, people buy more. We will write a custom essay sample on Following Conditional Construction Following Conditional Construction or any similar topic only for you Order Now B. Form (condition)(result) If sales increase,we make more profit. ZERO CONDITIONAL C. Uses The sentences of Zero conditional are general facts or things that are always true, i. e. the consequence always follows the event. Statements in this form commonly appear in factual discussions or scientific and technical material. In the condition clause there can be a variety of present forms. †¢When you fly business class, you get much more legroom. present simple)   Ã¢â‚¬ ¢If interest rates are rising, bank loans become more expensive. (present continuous) †¢When you’ve finished the course, you get a certificate. (present perfect). ZERO CONDITIONAL In the result clause there can be a present simple (last examples) or an imperative. †¢When you fly business class, don’t drink too much of the free alcohol. Notice that we can use either if or when(ever) where the meaning is every time. CONDITIONAL   I A. Sample sentences †¢If I do an MBA, I’ll improve my job prospects. †¢If our main competitor goes bankrupt, we’ll increase our market share.B. Form (condition) (result) †¢If you increase your order,we’ll give you a bigger discount. †¢If anyone from Head Officesay I’m in a meeting. calls, CONDITIONAL   I C. Uses 1. In Conditional I the speaker sees the event as a real possibility, i. e. , if-clause is used to talk about future events that are reasonably likely and their results. The if-clause states the condition, and the other clause states the result: †¢If sales don’t go well this year (condition), we won’t increase our profits. (result) With all types of conditionals the if-clause can come second. We’ll make more profit if sales increase. CONDITIONAL   I 2. if and unless Unless often replaces if †¦+ negative expression:†¢If you don’t wear a suit and tie, you won’t be allowed into the club. †¢You won’t be allowed into the club unless you wear a suit and tie. Conditional statements can function as either promises, warnings or threats. But note that unless cannot be used to make a promise. †¢If you order now, you’ll get a free gift. (promise) †¢We won’t be able to do business with you unless you comply with our ethical policy. warning) †¢Unless we receive payment by the end of the week we will be forced to consider legal action. (threat) CONDITIONAL   I 3. In Conditional I, the imperative, or modal verbs can be used in the main clause, e. g. may, can or must, instead of will + infinitive: †¢If you hear from Anne today, tell her to give me a call. †¢If the traffic is bad, I may miss the appointment with our supplier. †¢If we sign the contract today, we can start production at the end of next week. †¢If Mr. Porter rings, you must ask him to leave his number. CONDITIONAL   I 4. We do not use will in the if part of the sentence even when the meaning is future: †¢If the goods will arrive tomorrow, I will collect it. (? ) †¢If the goods arrive tomorrow, I will collect it. (? ) Will is only possible in such cases if it is used to express not future time but willingness or invitations (the style is formal), e. g. †¢If you will sign this agreement, I will let you have the money at once. †¢If you will come this way, Mr. Jones will see you now.CONDITIONAL   I 5. In formal written documents, e. g. egal contracts or agreements, one may find the following conditional construction in Conditional I: †¢Should the agent default on the contract, we will take legal action. †¢Should the unions accept new productivity agreements, the employers will meet their wage demands. †¢Should + infinitive is an inverted construction in place of â€Å"If the agent defaults†¦Ã¢â‚¬  or, â€Å"If the unions accept†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . †¢!!! Note that only should, never would, is used in this way. CONDITIONAL   II †¢Sample sentences †¢If trains were more reliable, more people would use them. †¢If I had as much money as Bill Gates, I would retire.B. Form †¢If you wanted a quantity    you would have to order discount,    at least 1,000 units. †¢If I knew her number,      I would send her a fax. CONDITIONAL   II C. Uses 1. We use the Conditional II to refer to an action or state we imagine, i. e. , the speaker sees the event as a remote possibility: †¢If these machines were not so expensive, we would buy them. (But they are expensive, and we are not going to buy them. ) †¢If he lost his job tomorrow, he would move to London to find another one. (He doesn’t think he will lose his job, but he understands the possible consequences. CONDITIONAL   II 2. It is also possible to use could or might instead of would: †¢If we hired a factoring agency, we could recover our debts more easily. †¢If every piece of mail was personalised with your company logo or message, your customers might be very impressed. CONDITIONAL   II 3. We do not use would in the if part of the sentence: †¢If trains would be more reliable, more people would use them. (? ) †¢If trains were more reliable, more people would use them. (? ) But, in the sentences †¢We would be very grateful if you would send us the information as soon as possible. I would be very grateful if you would put your address on the back of the cheque. would is not part of a conditional tense here. It is a modal verb, and represents a more polite form of will as used in conditional clauses in Conditional I. It introduces the idea of â€Å"yourâ€Å" agreeing, or being willing, to do what is suggested.CONDITIONAL   II 4. In formal written documents, e. g. legal contracts or agreements, one may find the following conditional construction in Conditional II: †¢Were the agent to default on the contract, we would take legal action. Were Alice to apply for the post, she would get it. †¢Inverted constructions are in place of â€Å"If the agent defaulted†¦ † and â€Å"If Alice applied for†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . Conditional II ?What would you say to a friend who asked you which faculty to go to? ?What would you do if you were ?the Prime Minister ?the Dean of the Faculty of Economics? CONDITIONAL   III †¢Sample sentences †¢If I had done an MBA, I would have had more opportunities. †¢If we had anticipated the crash, we wouldn’t have lost so much money. B. Form If the price had been lower,sales would have been higher.If we had made a better offer,we would have won that contract.CONDITIONAL   III C. Uses †¢We use Conditional III to imagine the opposite situation. If what actually happened was negative, we use a positive form, and vice versa. If what actually happened was positive, we use a negative form: ?We didn’t put up our prices (-), so we kept our market share (+). ?If we had put up our prices (+), we would not have kept our market share (-). ?We promoted him (+) and he didn’t give his notice (-). ?If we hadn’t promoted him (-), he would have given his notice (+).CONDITIONAL   III . In Conditional III the speaker recognizes that the event is an impossibility, i. e. cannot be fulfilled: †¢If we had waited a few more months, we would have saved a great deal of money on the new faxes. (But we didn’t wait a few more months; so, we didn’t save money on the faxes). †¢If you had sent the letter by airmail, it wouldn’t have been delayed. (But, you didn’t send the letter by airmail, so it was delayed). CONDITIONAL   III 3. We can use could or might instead of would: †¢The merger could have succeeded if the management styles hadn’t been so different. The presentation might have been better if she had felt more confident. CONDITIONAL   III 4. You may find the following conditional construction in Conditional III: †¢Had we made a better offer, we would have won that contract. †¢Had the shop packed the goods properly, they wouldn’t have got damaged. Inverted past perfect is in place of â€Å"If we had made †¦Ã¢â‚¬  and â€Å"If the shop had packed †¦Ã¢â‚¬ . !!! We do not use would in the if-clause. †¢If the interview wouldn’t have been a success, they would not have given me the job. (? ) †¢If the interview had not been a success, they would not have given me the job. (? ) How to cite Following Conditional Construction Following Conditional Construction, Papers