Conditionals in English are sentence structures that we use to talk about results, causes, possibilities or hypothetical situations. They usually have two parts:
- Condition (if-clause) → the situation
- Result (main clause) → what happens because of that situation
How do we use and make the Third Conditional in English?
Use: talking about the past and imagining a different result (often for regrets or missed opportunities)
Note: Both clauses are about things in the past that did not happen.
Structure: If + past perfect, would have + past participle
For example:
- If I had studied, I would have passed the exam.
(I did not study and I did not pass the exam.) - If we had left earlier, we would have caught the bus.
(We left too late and we missed the bus.) - If he’d eaten breakfast, he wouldn’t have been hungry.*
(He did not eat breakfast and then he WAS hungry.) - If they’d invited Ethel, she’d have gone to the party.**
- If I hadn’t seen her, I wouldn’t have heard the news.***
- If it had rained, the game would have been cancelled.
(The main clause here is a passive construction.)
* “Had” becomes “‘d” in contractions. E.g. I had → I’d, he had → he’d.
** “Would” also becomes “‘d” in contractions. E.g. I would → I’d, she would → she’d
*** This is how we use contractions in negative clauses: had not → hadn’t, would not → wouldn’t. It is possible to use constructions like “I’d not seen” (instead of “I hadn’t seen”) and “I’d not have heard” (instead of “I wouldn’t have heard), but these are not common in modern English.
Note: In spoken language, we can contract “would have” to “would’ve”. However, in written language, it is only used in very informal writing, like text messages and casual emails.
You can put the main clause first if you want. We often do this if we want to emphasise the result. When we do this, we do not usually use a comma.
For example:
- I would have passed the exam if I had studied.
- He wouldn’t have been hungry if he’d eaten breakfast.
Other Modal Verbs
Sometimes we can use other modal verbs (could, may, might) instead of “would”.
For example:
- If I had studied, I could have passed the exam. (ability)
- If I had studied, I may have passed the exam. (possibility)
- We could have caught the bus, if we had left earlier. (ability)
- We might have caught the bus, if we had left earlier. (possibility)
Questions
We can use the third conditional in questions.
For example:
- If you had left earlier, would you have caught the bus?
- Would Ethel have gone to the party if they had invited her?
- What would you have done if you’d had more time?
Comparisons
The second and third conditional are both used for unreal situations, but they are used for different times and have different meanings. We use the second conditional to talk about imaginary or unlikely things in the present and the future. We use the third conditional to talk about imaginary past situations (things that did not happen).
Compare:
| Second Conditional | If Frank studied, he would pass his exams. | imaginary or unlikely in the present or future |
| Third Conditional | If Frank had studied, he would have passed his exams. | impossible; imaginary situation in the past |
Spanish and Portuguese Translations
En: If Frank had studied, he would have passed his exams.
Sp: Si Frank hubiera estudiado, habría aprobado sus exámenes.
Pt: Se Frank tivesse estudado, teria passado nos exames.