Conditionals & wishes · CEFR B1 · Independent
Second conditional — English conditionals
Imaginary now. Use "were" for I, he and she.
The shape
If + past, would + plain verb
Imagine a situation that is not real.
In Hindi
अभी की काल्पनिक बात। I, he, she के साथ "were" आता है।
CoCap explains every structure in both languages, because a rule you understand in Hindi is a rule you can use in English.
The mistake to fix first
The sentence Indian-English speakers actually produce, and the reason it is wrong.
| Commonly said | Correct English |
|---|---|
If I was you, I would go. | If I were you, I would go. This is the one place English keeps "were" for "I". |
Second conditional examples
Easiest first. Every sentence is authored, with the Hindi it comes from.
If we had more time, we would test it properly.
अगर ज़्यादा समय होता, तो हम और अच्छे से जाँचते।
If we had more time, we would travel more.
अगर ज़्यादा समय होता, तो हम ज़्यादा घूमते।
If we had more time, we would finish the course.
अगर ज़्यादा समय होता, तो हम कोर्स पूरा करते।
If we had more time, we would train the new people.
अगर ज़्यादा समय होता, तो हम नए लोगों को सिखाते।
If we had more time, we would write it again.
अगर ज़्यादा समय होता, तो हम फिर से लिखते।
If they were you, they would take the offer.
अगर वे आपकी जगह होते, तो ऑफ़र ले लेते।
If they were you, they would speak to the manager.
अगर वे आपकी जगह होते, तो मैनेजर से बात करते।
If they were you, they would wait a week.
अगर वे आपकी जगह होते, तो एक हफ़्ता रुकते।
If they were you, they would apply again.
अगर वे आपकी जगह होते, तो दोबारा आवेदन करते।
If they were you, they would say no politely.
अगर वे आपकी जगह होते, तो शालीनता से मना करते।
Learn these first
These come first. The rest of this makes more sense once they are automatic.
Easy to confuse with
Close enough to be mixed up with this one. Knowing the difference is most of knowing either.
- Third conditionalB2Talk about how the past could have gone differently
- If I had studied, I would have a job nowC1Say how a past choice still affects you today
- wish / if onlyB2Say what you wish were different
Questions people ask
- What is the second conditional used for?
- Imaginary now. Use "were" for I, he and she. In practice: imagine a situation that is not real.
- How do you form the second conditional?
- If + past, would + plain verb.
- What is the most common mistake with the second conditional?
- Saying “If I was you, I would go.” instead of “If I were you, I would go.”. This is the one place English keeps "were" for "I".
Where second conditional fits
Where this structure sits in the ladder, and what surrounds it.
Second conditional is a CEFR B1 structure — the independent band — and it belongs to conditionals & wishes. CoCap’s syllabus files every structure this way so you can learn in order instead of jumping between whatever a search happened to return.
Reading it is not the same as saying it.
CoCap turns this page into practice: Hindi sentence in, English sentence out, corrected one thing at a time. Free, no card.
Practise the second conditional →