Grammar: Third conditional
The third conditional is used to talk about things which are:
- in the past, and therefore impossible to change
- we use it to express regret
| If + | Past Perfect + | would have + | Past Participle |
| (continuous) | wouldn't have | ||
| If | I hadn't studied, I | wouldn't have | passed the exam. |
| If | I had seen him, I | would have | told him. |
| If | she hadn't gone out, she | wouldn't have | got sick. |
| If | John hadn't been driving, he | wouldn't have | got a fine. |
If the result is not sure, we can use: Would Probably, Might Have or Could Have
| If | I had studied, I | might have | passed the exam. |
| If | I had seen him, I | could have | told him. |
| If | she hadn't gone out, she | probably wouldn't have | got sick. |
| Would(n't) have + | Past Participle + | if + | Past Perfect |
| could/might have | (continuous) | ||
| I could have | passed the exam | if | I had studied. |
| I would have | told him | if | I had seen him. |
| She might have | gone to the party | if | she had known about it. |
| He wouldn't have | bought it, even | if | he had had the money. |
Note:
Sometimes the ‘IF’ clause is implied, but not spoken:
- He wouldn’t have said that. (if he had been there)
- I would have done it. (if you had asked me)
- I wouldn’t have let him get away with it. (if I had been there)
Exercise 1
Change the words in brackets into their correct form
- If you ______________ interrupting me the whole time, I would have enjoyed the movie. (be)
- If I had had your number, I _____________________ you. (phone)
- They _____________________ that route if they had known that there were road works. (take)
- I wouldn’t have booked that holiday if I ______________ there was a cheaper deal. (know)
- If I _________________ my job, I wouldn’t have moved to London. (lose)
- I ________________ used Groupon if I had known that it existed. (have)
- If I had seen the weather forecast, I _________________ an umbrella. (pack)
- If the weather ________________better yesterday, I would have gone for a swim. (be)
Exercise 2
Compete the sentences with a third conditional in your own words.
- ….. I would have been happier
- If I had been born in the 19th century…..
- If I had been an only child…..
- …..the world would have been a better place.
- If Superman had been a girl….
- If the 2nd World War hadn’t happened….
- …..I would have been a supermodel.
- …..I wouldn’t have got an education.
Exercise 3: Write down five regrets you have. Now go back and try and think of something positive that resulted from this regret.
eg: If I hadn't had a car crash I never would have broken my leg. But if I hadn't broken my leg and gone to hospital, I might not have met that lovely nurse!
Listening ex:
Pick ten scenarios from the song. Imagine they happened to someone you know. Make sentences using the third conditional.
eg: If he hadn't done his own electrical work, he wouldn't have burnt his house down!
Reading ex:
Pre-reading discussion:
1. How much of a person’s recovery from serious injury or illness is due to medicine,
and how much is due to mental attitude?
2. Do you know anyone who has recovered from injury or illness despite the poor
predictions of the doctor? It could be a personal friend, acquaintance, or famous
person.
3. What sort of character do you think a person needs to have in order to face a
challenge like this?
Now read The Times article 'Journalist. 52. Fallen off horse...' and answer the following questions:
1. What characteristics is she displaying that are helping her face the challenges before
her?
2. What characteristics does she think help people to overcome difficult situations?
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