Conditional Sentence

In grammar, conditional sentences are sentences discussing factual implications or hypothetical situations and their consequences. Languages use a variety of conditional constructions and verb forms (such as the conditional mood) to form these kinds of sentences.

Full conditional sentences contain two clauses: the condition or protasis, and the consequence or apodosis.

If it rains [condition], (then) the picnic will be cancelled [consequence].

Syntactically, the result is the main clause, and the condition is a subordinate clause. It is primarily the properties of the protasis (condition) (tense and degree of factualness), however, that determine the properties of the entire sentence.

Conditional sentences in English

English conditional sentences can be divided into two broad classes, depending on the form of the verb in the condition (protasis). The terms "realis" and "irrealis" broadly correspond to the notions of realis and irrealis modality.

Realis conditions
In these constructions, the condition clause expresses a condition the truth of which is unverified. The verb in the condition clause is in the past tense (with a past tense interpretation) or in the present tense (with a present or future tense interpretation). The result clause can be in the past, present, or future. Generally, conditional sentences of this group are in two groups, the "zero" conditional and the potential or indicative conditional. This class includes universal statements (both clauses in the present, or both clauses in the past) and predictions.

The "zero" conditional is formed with both clauses in the present tense. This construction is similar across many languages. It is used to express a certainty, a universal statement, a law of science, etc.:

If you heat water to 100 degrees celsius, it boils. Air akan mendidih jika dipanaskan sampai 100 derajat celsius. If you don't eat for a long time, you become hungry. Anda akan lapar jika tidak makan dalam waktu yang lama. If the sea is stormy, the waves are high. Ombak di laut akan tinggi jika terjadi badai.

It is different from true conditionals because the introductory "if" can be replaced by "when" or "whenever" (e.g., "When you heat water..."), which cannot be done for true conditionals.

The potential or indicative conditional (sometimes referred to as a "first" conditional) is used more generally to express a hypothetical condition that is potentially true, but not yet verified. The conditional clause is in the present or past tense and refers to a state or event in the past. The result can be in the past, present, or future. Some examples with the condition clause in the past tense:

If she took that flight yesterday, she arrived at 10pm. Dia akan tiba pukul 10 malam jika dia terbang kemarin. If she took that flight yesterday, she is somewhere in town today. Dia sudah akan tiba di kota jika dia terbang kemarin. If she took that flight yesterday, we'll see her tomorrow. Kita sudah akan bertemu dengannya besok jika dia terbang kemarin.

A condition clause (protasis) in the present tense refers to a future event, a current event which may be true or untrue, or an event which could be verified in the future. The result can be in the past, present, or future:

If it's raining here now, then it was raining on the Bogor this morning. Jika di sini sedang hujan, berarti tadi pagi di Bogor hujan.

If it's raining now, then your laundry is getting wet. Jika di sini sedang hujan, berarti jemuranmu basah.
If it's raining now, there will be mushrooms to pick next week. Jika di sini sedang hujan, minggu depan akan ada jamur untuk dipetik. If it rains this afternoon, then yesterday's weather forecast was wrong. Jika nanti sore hujan, berarti ramalan cuaca kemarin salah. If it rains this afternoon, your garden party is doomed. Jika nanti sore hujan, pesta kebunmu akan berantakan. If it rains this afternoon, everybody will stay home. Jika nanti sore hujan, orang-orang akan diam di rumah. If I become President, I'll lower taxes. Jika Aku jadi Presiden, Aku akan menurunkan pajak.

Certain modal auxiliary verbs (mainly will, may, might, and could) are not used in the condition clause (protasis) in English: *If it will rain this afternoon, *If it may have rained yesterday, In colloquial English, the imperative is sometimes used to form a conditional sentence: e.g. "go eastwards a mile and you'll see it" means "if you go eastwards a mile, you will see it".

Irrealis conditions
In these constructions, the condition clause expresses a condition that is known to be false, or presented as unlikely. The result clause contains a conditional verb form consisting of would (or could, should, might) plus an infinitival main verb. The contrary-to-fact present conditional (sometimes referred to as the "second" conditional) is used to refer to a current state or event that is known to be false or improbable. The past subjunctive (or in colloquial English, simply the past tense) must be used:

If she were [colloq. was] at work today, she would know how to deal with this client. Jika Dia kerja hari ini, Dia akan mengetahui bagaimana cara menghadapi klien ini. If I were [colloq. was] the king, I could have you thrown in the dungeon. Jika Aku jadi Raja, Aku akan melemparmu ke penjara bawah tanah. The same structure can be used to refer to a future state or event: If I won the lottery, I would buy a car. Jika Aku dapat lotre, Aku akan beli mobil. If he said that to me, I would run away. Jika Dia mengatakan itu kepadaku, Aku akan lari.

In many cases, when referring to future events, the difference between a realis and irrealis conditional is very slight: (realis) If you leave now, you can still catch your train. Jika Anda pergi sekarang, keretanya masih bisa terkejar. (irrealis) If you left now, you could still catch your train. Jika Anda pergi sekarang, keretanya masih bisa terkejar.

The contrary-to-fact past conditional (sometime referred to as the "third" conditional) is used to refer to contraryto-fact past events. The pluperfect (or past perfect) is used in the condition clause. If you had called me, I would have come. Jika kamu bisa meneleponku, mungkin Aku akan datang. If you had done your job properly, we wouldn't be in this mess now. Jika kamu telah mengerjakan pekerjaanmu dengan baik, kita tidak akan mendapat masalah sekarang.

Note that would-conditional forms are not usually used in the condition clause in English: *If you would leave now, you would be on time. There are exceptions, however: If you would listen to me once in a while, you might learn something. Some varieties of English regularly use would have in the protasis for past reference, although this is considered non-standard: If you would've told me, we could've done something about it. Should can appear in the condition clause to refer to a future event presented as possible, but unlikely, undesirable, or otherwise "remote": If I should die before I wake, , If you should ever find yourself in such a situation,