イギリス英会話ブログ

This post is about conditional sentences, in particular the 1st conditional. I will explain the grammar, meaning and usage of 1st conditional sentences.

conditional - 仮定的・条件付の // in particular - とくに

The keyword in a conditional sentence is ‘if‘, equivalent to the Japanese 「もし」. ‘If‘ is used to introduce a condition, depending on which something will happen.

condition - 条件 // depending on which -　～のいかんによって

1st conditional sentences usually talk about the future, but in the ‘if’-clause we always use the present tense. For example :

• I’ll do the washing if I have time. ( not : if I will have time )

The same rule applies for future sentences using any of the following conjunctions : before, when, after, until and while. Check these examples and try shadowing the sentences.

• I’ll make you some tea before I go to work.
• I’ll give it to him when I see him.
• He said he’ll call you after he finishes work.
• I’ll wait here until you get back.
• The children are going to stay with their grandparents while we are in the UK.

This is a rule of thumb rather than an absolute - it is possible to use the future tenses, or the past tenses, after ‘if’, as you can see in the following examples :

rule of thumb - 概略の測定 // absolute - 絶対的な（ルール）

• I don’t know if I’m going to have time.
• I can’t remember if he was there or not.

But for future predictions or promises that depend on some condition, you should use the 1st conditional - with the present tense in the ‘if’-clause.

prediction - 予言 // promise - 約束

In the following examples you can see that the ‘if’-clause can come at the beginning or in the middle of the sentence :

• If you don’t hurry, you’ll be late.
• It may be easier to get a job if you have a degree.
• We can talk later if you’re busy now.
• If you need money, I can lend you some.
• We can eat now if you’re hungry.

Next, for some practice, try translating the following sentences into English. Then listen to the audio to see if you made the same sentence as me. Some of them are strictly first conditional, some are not.

1. 切符が手に入るなら、コンサートに行くつもりです。
2. 急がないと、電車の間に合わないよ。
3. 今夜早く寝たら 、明日は元気になるよ。
4. テレビを見ていないなら、電源を切ってください。
5. 彼女は、もうちょっと真面目に勉強しなければ、試験で失敗する。
6. 明日は、時間があれば、薬局に行きたいです。
7. 今夜私の帰るのが遅くなっても、待たないでね。

Just to sum up, the 1st conditional is used for future predictions or promises that depend on some condition. The condition is expressed in an ‘if’-clause that uses the present tense.The 1st conditional is used for real situations that are likely to happen and not used for imaginary, unreal or unlikely situations. The latter are expressed using the 2nd conditional, which I will introduce in my next post.

likely to happen - 起こり得る // imaginary - 想像的 // unlikely - ありえない・起こる確率が低い

the latter - 後者