UNIT 29

GRAMMAR

Conditionals 2 (third)

THIRD CONDITIONAL

if + past perfect simple, would + have + past participle

Use

Example

Unreal situations in

the

past

and

their

unreal past results,

If the chemist had been open, I would have bought some aspirin.

(= The chemist wasn’t open, so I didn’t buy any aspirin.)

If I hadn’t listened to you, I would have cooked the chicken for

too long.)

(= I listened to you, so I didn’t cook the chicken for too long.)

If he had seen the doctor, he wouldn’t have been ill for such a

long time.)

(= He didn’t see the doctor, so he was ill for a long time.)

If you hadn’t eaten a giant pizza, you wouldn’t have been sick!

(= You ate a giant pizza, so you were sick.)

Helpful hints

We can also use ‘could’ and ‘might’ instead of ‘would’, depending on the meaning.



If you had eaten a giant pizza, you might have been sick!

(= It’s possible, but not certain, that you would have been sick.)



If Mary had told me she was coming, I could have cooked a nice meal.

(= I would have been able to cook a nice meal.)

Watch out!



The third conditional is the only conditional that refers to the past.



If I had had a headache, I would have taken an aspirin. (= in the past)



We use past simple in the second conditional, but that does not refer to the past.