Chapter 6A: Conditional Sentences

Conditional sentences express “if…then” relationships. They are among the most complex constructions in any language because they require careful coordination of mood and tense to distinguish between real and unreal scenarios.

Structure of Conditionals

Every conditional sentence has two parts:

The protasis sets up a hypothesis; the apodosis tells us what follows from it.

The Logic of Conditionals

Languages distinguish between conditions based on how the speaker views their likelihood:

The mood of the verb signals which type of condition is intended. This is why understanding mood (see Chapter 2: Verbs) is essential for conditionals.

English Conditionals

English uses a combination of tense and modal verbs to distinguish conditional types.

The Four Types

Detailed Analysis

Factual Conditional (General Truths)

Expresses things that are always true when the condition is met.

Both clauses use present tense because we’re stating general facts, not specific events.

Predictive Conditional (Real Future)

The condition is genuinely possible; we don’t know if it will happen.

Note: The protasis uses present tense even though it refers to the future — English uses present for future time in conditional and temporal clauses.

Hypothetical Conditional (Unreal Present)

The condition is contrary to current reality.

Key point: Were is used for all persons in formal English (If I were, if he were), though was is common in speech. This is the last remnant of the English subjunctive.

The past tense doesn’t refer to past time — it signals unreality. This is called the modal past or hypothetical past.

The “Were to” Conditional

English has a distinct construction using were to + infinitive in the protasis:

This form is significant because it uses the subjunctive were explicitly combined with an infinitive. Compare:

Uses of “were to”:

1. Hypothetical future actions: If the sun were to explode, we would have eight minutes of light.
2. Unlikely scenarios: If I were to win the lottery, I would retire.
3. Formal or literary style: If he were to ask me, I would refuse.

This construction clearly displays the subjunctive mood that English has largely lost. Understanding it helps when encountering subjunctives in Spanish (si tuviera), French (si j’avais), German (wenn ich wäre), Latin (sī essem), and Greek (εἰ εἴην) — all of which use subjunctive or its equivalent for hypothetical conditions.

Counterfactual Conditional (Unreal Past)

The condition was not fulfilled in the past; we’re imagining an alternative history.

Mixed Conditionals

Sometimes the time of the condition differs from the time of the consequence:

Spanish Conditionals

Spanish uses the subjunctive mood extensively in conditionals.

The Types

Detailed Analysis

Real Conditions

The condition may or may not be true.

Note: Spanish uses present indicative after si for real conditions, just like English.

Unreal Present (Contrary-to-Fact)

The condition is not currently true.

The protasis uses the imperfect subjunctive (tuviera/tuviese, fuera/fuese). The apodosis uses the conditional (compraría, viajaría).

Two forms: Spanish has two imperfect subjunctive forms (-ra and -se). Both are correct: si tuviera = si tuviese.

Unreal Past (Past Contrary-to-Fact)

Something that didn’t happen in the past.

The protasis uses the pluperfect subjunctive (hubiera/hubiese + past participle). The apodosis uses the conditional perfect (habría + past participle).

Summary Table

French Conditionals

French uses the conditional mood (which developed from Latin) and the imperfect/pluperfect indicative — not the subjunctive — in conditional clauses.

The Types

Detailed Analysis

Real Conditions

Unreal Present

Note: French uses the imperfect indicative (not subjunctive!) after si. The conditional appears in the apodosis.

Important rule: Never use the conditional or future after si in French. - Si j’aurais… — WRONG - Si j’avais… — CORRECT

Unreal Past

The protasis uses pluperfect indicative (avais étudié). The apodosis uses conditional past (aurais réussi).

Summary Table

German Conditionals

German uses Konjunktiv II (subjunctive II) for unreal conditions.

The Types

Konjunktiv II

German has two subjunctive moods: - Konjunktiv I: Used for reported speech - Konjunktiv II: Used for hypotheticals and conditionals

Konjunktiv II is formed from the past tense stem with umlaut (where possible):

For many verbs, especially weak verbs, Konjunktiv II is identical to the past indicative. In these cases, German uses würde + infinitive:

Detailed Analysis

Real Conditions

Unreal Present

Note: Strong verbs often use their Konjunktiv II form directly (käme, ginge, wäre); weak verbs typically use würde + infinitive.

Unreal Past

Uses Konjunktiv II of haben/sein + past participle in both clauses.

Word Order Note

In German, the verb goes to the end in subordinate clauses: - Wenn ich reich wäre…

But if wenn is omitted, the verb comes first (verb-first conditional): - Wäre ich reich, würde ich reisen. (Were I rich, I would travel.)

Latin Conditionals

Latin uses mood systematically to distinguish condition types. Understanding Latin conditionals requires knowing the subjunctive (see Chapter 2: Verbs).

The Types

Detailed Analysis

Simple Conditions (Indicative)

The speaker makes no comment on whether the condition is true — it simply states a logical relationship.

Present: | Latin | Translation | |——-|————-| | Sī hoc dīcis, errās. | If you say this, you are wrong. | | Sī pluit, domī maneō. | If it is raining, I stay home. |

Past: | Latin | Translation | |——-|————-| | Sī hoc dīxistī, errāvistī. | If you said this, you were wrong. |

Future More Vivid

The condition is presented as a real possibility.

Note: Latin can use either future or future perfect in the protasis; English uses present.

Future Less Vivid (“Should-Would”)

The condition is presented as hypothetical but possible.

Both clauses use present subjunctive. This expresses a vaguer, less definite future than the “more vivid” type.

Present Contrary-to-Fact

The condition is known to be false now.

Both clauses use imperfect subjunctive.

Past Contrary-to-Fact

The condition was not fulfilled in the past.

Both clauses use pluperfect subjunctive.

Summary Table

Negation

Latin uses nisi (if not, unless) for negative conditions:

Greek Conditionals

Greek has the most elaborate conditional system, using combinations of mood, tense, and the particle ἄν to distinguish types.

The Types

The Particle ἄν

The particle ἄν (Attic) / κε(ν) (Epic/Ionic) is the key marker of potentiality in Greek. Its presence in the apodosis signals that the condition is unreal or hypothetical.

Detailed Analysis

Simple (Particular) Conditions

States facts or logical relationships without comment on likelihood.

Uses indicative in both clauses; no ἄν.

Future More Vivid

A likely future condition.

Uses ἐάν (= εἰ + ἄν) with subjunctive in protasis; future indicative in apodosis.

Note: ἐάν contracts: ἐάν → ἤν, ἄν

Future Less Vivid

A possible but less definite future condition.

Uses εἰ with optative in protasis; optative + ἄν in apodosis.

Present Contrary-to-Fact

The condition is false now.

Uses εἰ with imperfect indicative in protasis; imperfect indicative + ἄν in apodosis.

Key insight: Greek uses past indicative (not subjunctive!) for present unreal conditions. The ἄν particle marks the unreality.

Past Contrary-to-Fact

The condition was not fulfilled in the past.

Uses εἰ with aorist indicative in protasis; aorist indicative + ἄν in apodosis.

Summary Table

Comparative Summary

How Each Language Signals Unreal Conditions

Key Observations

1. English and French use indicative tenses (past, pluperfect) in the protasis, with modality expressed by would or the conditional mood.

2. Spanish and Latin use subjunctive in the protasis for unreal conditions.

3. German has a dedicated subjunctive (Konjunktiv II) for hypotheticals.

4. Greek uses past indicative for unreal conditions but marks unreality with the particle ἄν in the apodosis.

5. Tense shift: In unreal conditions, the tense shifts “backwards” — present becomes past, past becomes pluperfect. This is a cross-linguistic pattern.

Parsing Conditional Sentences

Step-by-Step Method

1. Identify the conditional marker (if, si, si, wenn, sī, εἰ/ἐάν)
2. Determine the mood of both verbs
3. Check for unreality markers (would, ἄν, subjunctive, Konjunktiv II)
4. Classify the type based on mood and tense
5. Translate with appropriate English equivalents

Worked Example: Latin

Sentence: Sī adfuissēs, laetior fuissem.

Worked Example: Greek

Sentence: εἰ ἐκεῖνος ἦλθεν, εἶδον ἂν αὐτόν.

Common Errors

English

• Using would in the if-clause: If I would have known → If I had known

Spanish

• Using conditional after si: Si tendría → Si tuviera

French

• Using conditional or future after si: Si j’aurais → Si j’avais

German

• Using würde in both clauses when Konjunktiv II forms exist: Wenn ich würde wissen → Wenn ich wüsste

Latin

• Mixing indicative and subjunctive inappropriately
• Using wrong tense of subjunctive (imperfect vs. pluperfect)

Greek

• Forgetting ἄν in the apodosis of contrary-to-fact conditions
• Using subjunctive instead of indicative for contrary-to-fact

Summary Tables

Quick Reference: Unreal Present

Quick Reference: Unreal Past

Previous: Chapter 6: Clauses

Next: Chapter 7: Parsing Sentences