17. The Third Conditional

Learning Outcomes

After completing this chapter, students will know how to:

  • use the function of the Third Conditional.
  • form the Third Conditional.
  • apply the Third Conditional.

Function of the Third Conditional

The Third Conditional is used to show the consequence for regrets or unfulfilled actions. The action did not happen, but what would the outcome have been?

Some example sentences are:

  • If we had met you earlier, we could have caught the early show. (We didn’t meet you early, so we went to the later show.)
  • If I hadn’t moved to Canada, I wouldn’t have met you. (I moved to Canada, and I met you.)
  • Arif wouldn’t have missed the test if he had arrived on time for class. (Arif was late, so he missed the test.)
  • We would have walked to the party if it hadn’t snowed so much last night. (It snowed last night, so it was too cold and slushy to walk to the party.)
  • If I had married earlier in life, I could have had 4 children by now. (I was older when I married, so I was too old to have a lot of kids.)

 

Form of the Third Conditional

It doesn’t matter when we switch the clauses; the meaning will still stay the same. However, let us explore how the Third Conditional is formed:

 

Some Tips:

  • A comma is used after the “if” clause when it starts the sentence. There is no comma when the main clause is at the beginning.
  • The condition is in the “if” clause and the regret/unfulfilled action outcome is in the main clause.
  • The negative form can be used in either of the clauses, or both of them, as long as the meaning makes sense. However, the negative verb is quite common in the main clause.
  • In speaking, “would have” and “could have”  sometimes sound like /wudda/ and /cudda/.

 

Watch the short video below to review and practice the third conditional.

Watch the video Third Conditional (5 mins) on YouTube

Video Source:  Ellii.com (2023, October 3). Third Conditional [Video]. https://youtu.be/ve4Tk78j6Nc

Third Conditional Verb Practice

Exercise 1

Exercise 1 (Text version)

Fill in the blanks using the correct forms of the verbs in brackets.

  1. If I borrow _______ [Blank 1 – borrow/not] my father’s car, I _______ [Blank 2 – drive/not] it so slowly.
  2. Markus _______ [Blank 1 – go] to the beach yesterday if the weather _______ [Blank 2 – be] nicer.
  3. If my kids _______ [Blank 1 – play/not] competitive sports, we _______ [Blank 2 – get] a dog when they were younger.
  4. If Virginia _______ [Blank 1 – stay] in Brampton, she _______ [Blank 2 – teach] at Sheridan College for a long time.
  5. Olivia _______ [Blank 1 – pay] thousands of dollars for Taylor Swift tickets if she _______ [Blank 2 – get] through on Ticketmaster.
  6. Amanda _______ [Blank 1 – let/not] her daughter go to the concert if she _______ [Blank 2 – know] it was 19+ only.
  7. If Ryan _______ [Blank 1 – receive/not] drums as a gift when he was 3 years old, he _______ [Blank 2 – become/not] a world class drummer.
  8. Mariam _______ [Blank 1 – bake] a homemade cake for the party if she _______ [Blank 2 – have] more time.
  9. The virus _______ [Blank 1 – spread/not] so quickly if more people _______ [Blank 2 – wear] masks at the conference.
  10. If the football team _______ [Blank 1 – train] harder, it _______ [Blank 2 – win] the championship game.

Check your Answers:  [1]

Exercise 2

Exercise 2 (Text version)

Select the correct statement to complete the sentences.

  1. If I hadn’t passed the exam, I _______[Blank 1] with honours.
    1. hadn’t graduated
    2. would have graduated
    3. wouldn’t have graduated
  2. Olivia would have collected a stipend of $300 if she _______[Blank 1] the deadline for the application.
    1. hadn’t missed
    2. had missed
    3. wouldn’t have missed
  3. If Catherine _______[Blank 1] to the radio before she left home, she would have prepared for the snow storm.
    1. had listened.
    2. would have listened.
    3. hadn’t listened.
  4. Sari _______[Blank 1] to work if she hadn’t caught a cold.
    1. won’t go
    2. would have gone
    3. would go
  5. If Oscar _______[Blank 1] the courage to ask Cindy out, they might have been a couple by now.
    1. had
    2. would have
    3. had had
  6. We _______[Blank 1] bought a house if the interest rates had been high.
    1. will buy
    2. would have
    3. wouldn’t have
  7. If Nora _______[Blank 1] Humber College instead of Georgian College, she would have lived in Toronto and not Barrie.
    1. chose
    2. choose
    3. had chosen
  8. If I had known you were coming, I _______[Blank 1] a room at the Hilton for you.
    1. had booked
    2. wouldn’t have booked
    3. would have booked
  9. The forest fire _______[Blank 1] if the camper had put out his campfire properly.
    1. would have started
    2. wouldn’t have started
    3. had started
  10. The Georgian Dining Room would have served pasta if they _______[Blank 1] of rice.
    1. ran out
    2. run out
    3. had run out

Check your Answers: [2]

Exercise 3

Exercise 3 (Text version)

Place the words in the correct blanks to complete the sentences.

  • wouldn’t have helped
  • hadn’t hit
  • had hit
  • would have helped
  • would have flown
  • had flown
  • had been
  • hadn’t been
  • had paid
  • would have paid
  1. Aidan ________[Blank 1] you if he hadn’t had the time.
  2. Lucy would have gotten her driver’s license if she ________[Blank 1] the examiner’s car in the parking lot.
  3. If Mohammed ________[Blank 1] the ball harder, it could have gone out of the park.
  4. If you had gone to see Hannah in the LHC, she ________[Blank 1] you with your assignment.
  5. Yurika ________[Blank 1] to Japan if she had more time on Reading Week.
  6. If Yurika ________[Blank 1] to Japan, she could have visited her family.
  7. My daughter would have bought more clothes at Artizia if the sale ________[Blank 1] better.
  8. If the weather ________[Blank 1] so terrible, we would have had the party outside.
  9. Carlos would have gotten better marks if he ________[Blank 1] more attention in class.
  10. I ________[Blank 1] more for a tip if the server had been friendlier.

Check your Answers: [3]

Third Conditional Meaning Practice

For discussion practice, talk with a classmate and ask these questions:

  1. If you had had gone to the USA instead of Canada, where would you have lived? If you had chosen a different path in life, what would have happened?
  2. If you had learned a different language than English, what would you have studied?
  3. What would you change about your appearance if you could?
  4. What would you change about your personality if you could?

Verb Tenses in Music

For a fun activity, search the web and find the following songs:

  • The Outside by Taylor Swift
  • If It Hadn’t Been for Love by Adele

Can you hear the Third Conditional in the lyrics?

Attribution & References

Except where otherwise noted, “The Third Conditional” by Virginia McHardy is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.

  1. 1. hadn't borrowed, wouldn't have driven; 2. would have gone, had been; 3. hadn't played, would have gotten; 4. had stayed, would have taught; 5. would have paid, had gotten; 6. wouldn't have let, had known; 7. hadn't received, wouldn't have become; 8. would have baked, had had; 9. wouldn't have spread, had worn; 10. had trained, would have won. ↵
  2. 1. b, 2. a, 3. a, 4. b, 5. c, 6. c, 7. c, 8. c, 9. b, 10. c. ↵
  3. 1. wouldn't have helped, 2. hadn't hit, 3. had hit, 4. would have helped, 5. would have flown, 6. had flown, 7. had been, 8. hadn't been, 9. had paid 10. would have paid. ↵

License

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Verb Tenses for English for Academic Purposes Copyright © 2019 by Sari Martin and Virginia McHardy is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, except where otherwise noted.

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