Grammar

Mixed Conditional

Use a mixed conditional when the time of the condition and the time of the result are different — for example, a past condition with a present result, or a present condition with a past result.

Post

Level C1 Conditionals

Summary

Use a mixed conditional when the time of the condition and the time of the result are different — for example, a past condition with a present result, or a present condition with a past result.

Structure

if + past perfect, ... would + base verb (or) if + past simple, ... would have + past participle

Examples

If I had taken that job, I would be rich now.
She wouldn't be so tired today if she had slept earlier.
If I were more organized, I wouldn't have missed the deadline.
If he had married her, his life would be very different now.

Common mistakes

• Keep the clauses in different time frames; don't 'correct' it to a standard conditional.
• Don't use 'would' in the if-clause.

Related

Second Conditional Third Conditional

More conditionals

First Conditional B1

Use the first conditional for real or likely situations in the future and their probable results.

Zero Conditional B1

Use the zero conditional for facts and things that are always true — when one thing happens, the result always follows.

Second Conditional B2

Use the second conditional for unreal, hypothetical, or unlikely situations in the present or future, and their imagined results.

Third Conditional B2

Use the third conditional to talk about imagined past situations that did not happen, and to express regret or criticism about the past.

Wish / If Only (Present) B2

'Wish' and 'if only' with a past tense express a desire for a present situation to be different. The past form is unreal — it signals dissatisfaction with how things are now.

Wish / If Only (Past) B2

'Wish' and 'if only' with the past perfect express regret about the past — a desire that something earlier had been different. They look back at choices that can no longer be changed.

External links

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