Conditionals: third and mixed

Do you know how to use third conditionals and mixed conditionals? Test what you know with interactive exercises and read the explanation to help you.

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: Conditionals 2: 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: Conditionals 2: Grammar test 2

Try another grammar lesson

Language level

B1 Intermediate

B2 Upper intermediate

If I had studied more , I would have pass the exam

If someone had told me what my mistakes were, I would have improved my grammar.

if I had studied more , I would have pass my course

if I had gone to the university of chicago, I wouldn't have been with my partner.

I am realy having a great experiences learning the past topics I had learned during my studies. I didn't know after almost a decade out of school, I still remember some grammar topics. I encourage anyone doubting himself/herself to come here and practice 😊😊👌.

3rd and mix conditional are always a confusion

Yes, I keep in touch with my old school friends. It’s difficult to find a day to go out, but once a year we try to get together. It is great fun to talk about old times and see each other.

If I were rich, I would buy a ticket for the concert.
If I were president, I would enact a law to increase the minimun wage without help of Congress.
If I were fairy godmother, I would create a world made of chocolate.
If I had enrolled in a course on time, I would have graduated this year.
If I had worked on thesis, I would have become a lawyer this year.
If I had watched the weather report, I would have brought my umbrella.
If I would have passed the exam, I had studied.
If I had become a doctor, I would have operated on the patient.
If I were a time traveler, I would meet our ancestors.
If I hadn't listened to my cousin, I wouldn't have known about the end of the movie.

How is this correct?

If I hadn't got the job in Tokyo, I wouldn't be with my current partner.

this eg under mixed conditionals, shouldn't it be ''If I hadn't gotten the job...." ??

Hello anything,

The standard third form for the verb 'get' is 'got' [get > got > got]. In informal speech in the US people sometimes use the form 'gotten' as an alternative.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

I don't get why this one is the mixed type: "If you had started studying earlier, you'd feel more prepared for the exam". Since there is no time expression in the main clause, we can also use "would have felt". Therefore, both "would feel" and "would have felt" would be correct, right?

Hello sparklingwater22,

'Mixed conditionals' really refers to conditional sentences in which there is a different time reference in each clause: past + present, for example, or past + future.

Your example can use would feel or would have felt, as you say, but there is a difference in meaning:

1/ If you had started studying earlier, you'd feel more prepared for the exam.
2/ If you had started studying earlier, you'd have felt more prepared for the exam.

Both sentences describe an unreal past situation: the person ('you') did not start studying earlier. Sentence 1 describes a present result (you'd feel like this now), while sentence 2 describes a past result (you'd feel like that then). From this, we can infer that in sentence 1 the exam has not taken place yet whereas in sentence 2 it has.

Sentence 2 is 'mixed' because there are two time references: past + present.

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

Sentence 2 is third conditional, while sentence 1 is mixed, am I right? I understand that sentence 1 has two time references: past + present, whereas sentence 2 speaks about two imaginary situations in the past, could you please elaborate more? Thanks.