Second Conditional in English

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• Examples of second conditional

The second conditional (second conditional) is used to refer to situations that are not real in the present, and that are not very likely to occur in the future. For this reason, it is often said that they are imaginary situations.

The structure of the second conditional sentence is:

If + verb in past simple + would / could / might + verb

The clause would / could / might + verb is a tense called simple conditional.

See also: Examples of Conditional 0 (zero)

Examples of second conditional

1. If I were taller, she would like me. (If it were taller, you'd like it.)
2. If I won the lottery, I would buy my dream house. (If I won the lottery, I would buy the house of my dreams.)
3. If she lost weight, the dress would fit. (If she lost weight, the dress would fit her.)
4. If we lived in France we learned French very fast.(If we lived in France we would learn French very quickly.)
5. If they were in our place, they would do the same thing. (If they were in our shoes, they would do the same.)
6. If I had children, I would teach them to dance. (If I had children, I would teach them to dance.)
7. If we didn’t have to go to school, we could go to the match. (If we didn't have to go to school, we could go to the game.)
8. If she were your friend, you would tell her the truth. (If she was your friend, you would tell her the truth.)
9. If you didn’t watch so much television you would do better at school. (If you didn't watch so much television, you would do better in school.)
10. If you paid more attention to your grandmother, she would be happier. (If you paid more attention to your grandmother, she would be happier.)
11. If I started swimming my back would stop hurting. (If I started swimming, my back would stop hurting.)
12. If they were our children, we would let them go to the park. (If they were our children, we would allow them to go to the park.)
13. If you made a movie, you could tell the story of your life. (If you made a movie, you could tell the story of your life.)
14. If it wasn’t raining we could go for a run. (If it wasn't raining we could go for a run.)
15. If I had more money I would buy a bigger car. (If I had more money, I would buy a bigger car.)
16. If I had a younger brother I would teach him to play basketball. (If I had a younger brother, I would teach him to play basketball.)
17. If your friends were in town we could have a party. (If your friends were in town, we could have a party.)
18. If she was taller she wouldn’t wear high heels. (If I was taller I wouldn't wear high heels.)
19. If you paid your taxes in time, you wouldn't have these problems. (If you paid your taxes on time, you wouldn't have these problems.)
20. If they worked harder they would get better results. (If they worked harder they would have better results.)

See also: Examples Sentences in Present Perfect in English

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