Learn English Free and Fast - 2nd Conditional / Conditional 2

2nd Conditional / Conditional II

Used to express unreal situations in the present or future. Often used to express a wish.

Uses the simple past tense:-

(IF Clause)	(Main Clause)
If I won the lottery,	I would buy a new house.

or...

(Main Clause)	(IF Clause)
I would buy a new house	if I won the lottery.

Note! We never use would, or wouldn't in the if clause.

For example:

If I were you, I wouldn't do that. = I wouldn't do that, if I were you. (I am not you - therefore the condition is unreal).
If I had more time, I would do more on my websites. = I would do more on my websites, if I had more time. (I don't have more time - therefore the condition is unreal).