Third conditional

  

•                 We normally use third conditional sentences to talk about hypothetical/ imaginary situations in the past, i.e.  how thing could have been different in the past. Compare:

 

Yesterday I got up late and missed my train. (= the real situation)

If I hadn’t got late yesterday, I wouldn’t have missed my train. (= the hypothetical/ imaginary situation).

 

•                        To make a third conditional, we use if+ past perfect and would have+ past participle. NOT if I would have known you had a problem.

 

•              The contraction of both had and would is ‘d.

 

If I’d have Known you had a problem, I’d have helped you.

 

•               We can use might or could instead of would to make the result less certain.

 

If she’d studied harder, she might have passed the exam.

 

 

If I’d known you had a problem, I would have helped you.

If Paul hadn’t gone to Brazil, he wouldn’t have met his wife.

Would you have gone to the party if you’d known Lisa was there?

You wouldn’t have lost your job if you hadn’t been late every day.

Exercise1        Exercise2