Look at these examples to see how third and mixed conditionals are used.
We would have walked to the top of the mountain if the weather hadn't been so bad.
If we'd moved to Scotland when I was a child, I would have a Scottish accent now.
If she was really my friend, she wouldn't have lied to me.
Try this exercise to test your grammar.
- Grammar test 1
Read the explanation to learn more.
Grammar explanation
Do you know how to use third and mixed conditionals?
Third conditionals and mixed conditionals
Conditionals describe the result of a certain condition. The if clause tells you the condition (If I hadn't been ill) and the main clause tells you the result (I would have gone to the party). The order of the clauses does not change the meaning.
If I hadn't been ill, I would have gone to the party.
I would have gone to the party if I hadn't been ill.
Conditional sentences are often divided into different types.
Third conditional
The third conditional is used to imagine a different past. We imagine a change in a past situation and the different result of that change.
If I had understood the instructions properly, I would have passed the exam.
We wouldn't have got lost if my phone hadn't run out of battery.
In third conditional sentences, the structure is usually: If + past perfect >> would have + past participle.
Mixed conditionals
We can use mixed conditionals when we imagine a past change with a result in the present or a present change with a result in the past.
1. Past/Present
Here's a sentence imagining how a change in a past situation would have a result in the present.
If I hadn't got the job in Tokyo, I wouldn't be with my current partner.
So the structure is: If + past perfect >> would + infinitive.
2. Present/Past
Here's a sentence imagining how a different situation in the present would mean that the past was different as well.
It's really important. If it wasn't, I wouldn't have called you on your holiday.
And the structure is: If + past simple >> would have + past participle.
Do this exercise to test your grammar again.
- Grammar test 2
Hello omar123,
The conditional is a mixed conditional. The first part refers to a general hypothetical condition and the second refers to what you would have done in the past if the condition were true. It's similar to this example:
If I were a more ambitious person I would have chosen to become a politician, not a teacher.
The condition is a statement about my character which is about all time. The result is a statement of how I would have behaved in my past, given that condition.
In both sentences you could use a past perfect: If it had been up to me and If I had been a more ambitious person. In this case the condition is placed in the past and refers to one moment in the past. By using the past simple (...it were up to me... and ...I were...) the condition is made more general and applies to all time.
Capitalisation refers to the use of capital letters. A sentence needs to start with a capital letter, not a small letter, and the first person pronoun I is always capitalised.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello omar123,
The phrase 'mixed conditional' means simply that there are different time references in each half of the sentence.
What we call a first conditional, for example, has the same time reference: the if-clause refers to a real or likely present or future and the result clause refers to a real or likely present or future. A second conditional is similar, with each clause referring to an unlikely or imaginary present or future. In a third conditional both halves refer to an imaginary past.
In a mixed conditional we have one time reference in the if-clause and a different one in the result clause. For example, we might have an if-clause which refers to an imaginary past and a result clause which refers to an imaginary present.
All conditionals must be consistent in the sense that they must either be about a real situation or an imaginary one; we cannot mix these.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi rajabpoor.benham,
That sentence is not grammatically incorrect. It describes a past condition and uses an imperative form to give advice based on that condition.
We would generally say 'happened' rather than 'did happen' but 'did happen' is possible as an emphatic form.
Whether the sentence is correct will depend upon what you want to say and the context in which it is to be used.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi learning,
Yes, they mean pretty much the same thing, but the perspective of the speaker on the trip to Florida is different in each. It's difficult to describe well without context, but, for example, the first one would be more likely if I'm wistfully imagining a trip to Florida next week because it's nowing right now in Vermont where I am (even though it's April!). The second one is more likely when you're not showing emotion about the trip, i.e. it's more matter-of-fact.
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team