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NIXON ALEJANDRO GAMBA RODRIGUEZ – ENGLISH TEACHER
CONDITIONALS

Zero Conditional: certainty
We use the so-called zero conditional when the result of the condition is always true, like a scientific fact.
Take some ice. Put it in a saucepan. Heat the saucepan. What happens? The ice melts (it becomes water). You would be surprised if it did not.
|IF |condition |result|
|  |present simple |present simple |
|If |you heat ice |it melts. |


Notice that we are thinking about a result that is always true for this condition. The result of the condition is an absolute certainty. We are not thinking about the future or the past, or even the present. We are thinking about a simple fact. We use the present simpletense to talk about the condition. We also use the present simple tense to talk about the result. The important thing about the zero conditional is that the condition always has the same result.
We can also use when instead of if, for example: When I get up late I miss my bus.
Look at some more examples in the tables below:
|IF |condition |Result |
| |present simple |present simple |
|If |I miss the 8 o'clock bus |I am late for work. |
|If |I am late for work |my boss gets angry. |
|If |people don't eat |they get hungry. |
|If |you heat ice |does it melt? |


 
|result |IF|Condition |
|present simple |  |present simple |
|I am late for work |if |I miss the 8 o'clock bus. |
|My boss gets angry |if |I am late for work. |
|People get hungry |if |they don't eat. |
|Does ice melt |if |you heat it?|


First Conditional: real possibility
We are talking about the future. We are thinking about a particular condition or situation in the future, and the result of this condition. There is a real possibility that this condition will happen. For example, it is morning. You are at home. You plan to play tennis this afternoon. But there are some clouds in the sky. Imagine that it rains. Whatwill you do?
|IF |condition |Result |
|  |present simple |WILL + base verb |
|If |it rains |I will stay at home. |


Notice that we are thinking about a future condition. It is not raining yet. But the sky is cloudy and you think that it could rain. We use the present simple tense to talk about the possible futurecondition. We use WILL + base verb to talk about the possible future result. The important thing about the first conditional is that there is a real possibility that the condition will happen. Here are some more examples (do you remember the two basic structures: [IF condition result] and [result IF condition]?):
|IF |condition |Result |
| |present simple |WILL + base verb |
|If |I see Mary |I will talk to her. |
|If |Tara is free tomorrow |he will invite her. |
|If |they do not pass their exam |their teacher will be sad. |
|If |it rains tomorrow |will you stay at home?|
|If |it rains tomorrow |what will you do? |


 
|result |IF |Condition |
|WILL + base verb |  |present simple |
|I will tell Mary |if |I see her. |
|He will invite Tara |if...