Second Conditional

                   Second Conditional

A second conditional sentence is comprised of two halves.

If

+

Past Simple

Then

Would   +   Infinitive

We use the second conditional to say what we might possibly do in an unlikely situation.

We have seen in Pre-Intermediate level how the zero conditional and the first conditional are used to talk about possibility and result. The second conditional is another structure used to talk about present or future possibility but it sees the possibility as very unlikely, remote, improbable.

Look at these examples:

If I won the lottery, I would buy a big house in France.
I would take the job if I were you!

The first situation is not very possible. The second is impossible. Both sentences are describing present/future situations. The second conditional is not used to talk about the past. For that, see the Third Conditional!

Often, we use were for every person in the second conditional. It's OK to use was for he, she and it but it is considered "better" to use were:

If she were married, she would understand my situation.
He could play basketball if he were taller.

First or Second Conditional?

We have already discussed how both these conditionals refer to present or future time. So what is the difference? Look at these sentences:

Milton Jones, Politician: "If I become President, I will cut taxes."

John Smith, taxi-driver: "If I became President, I would cut taxes."

Milton uses the First Conditional as he sees the possibility of becoming President as real. He is, after all, a politician. John is a taxi driver and has no chance of actually becoming President. So for him, it is a dream, an imagined situation. And this is where we use the Second Conditional.