In French, in the subordinate clause the conditions (after the conjunction si - if) the future tense and conditional tenses are not used.
If a Russian phrase does not contain a particle would, construction No. 1 is used. If there is such a particle in a sentence, then in French there are 4 possible constructions Nos. 2-5; the choice of tense and mood will depend on the temporal relations between the actions in the main and subordinate clauses.
1. Si + present; futur simple / present / impératif
The action expressed in the main clause is real and will occur after the condition from the subordinate clause is fulfilled. In this case, it is used in the main clause and in the subordinate clause.
Si tu me l'expliques, je resterai. - If you explain this to me, I will stay.
The action expressed in the main clause is real and occurs simultaneously with the action from the conditional clause. In this case, both in the main clause and in the subordinate clause are used.
Si nous travaillons beaucoup, nous sommes fatugués. - If we work hard, we get tired.
The action expressed in the main clause is an incentive to do something and occurs against the background of the implementation of the action from the conditional subordinate clause. In this case, it is used in the main clause and in the subordinate clause.
Si tu vas au magasin, achete du pain. - If you go to the store, buy bread.
2. Si + imparfait; conditionnel present
If we are talking about an action that may take place in the present or future if some condition is fulfilled, then in the main sentence the verb is placed in , and in the subordinate clause (after si - if) - in .
Si j'avais le temps, je le ferais. - If I had time, I would do it.
Je le ferais, si j'avais le temps demain. - I would do itif I had time tomorrow.
3. Si + plus-que-parfait; conditionnel passé
If we are talking about an action that could have happened in the past, but did not happen (and will not happen again), then in the main sentence it is used, and in the subordinate clause (after si - if) - in.
Si j'avais eu le temps hier, je l'aurais fait. - If I had time yesterday, I would have done it.
4. Si + plus-que-parfait; conditionnel present
If the action of the subordinate clause refers to the past, and the action of the main clause refers to the present, in the subordinate clause it is used, in the main clause -.
S'il avait voulu alors, il serait maintenant avec nous. - If he had wanted then, he would have been with us now.
On pourrait faire cette promenade ensemble si on les avait prévenus d’avance. - We could go for a walk together now if we warned them in advance.
The conditional mood in French can take two forms: présent and passé. Mode Conditionnel indicates an action that is desired, possible or expected and which depends on certain conditions.
Conditional mood in the present tense
When forming the Conditionnel present, use the Infinitif of the main verb + the ending imparfait:
Je “Infinitif” + -ais
Tu “Infinitif” + -ais
Il/elle “Infinitif” + -ait
Nous “Infinitif” + -ions
Vous “Infinitif” + -iez
Ils/elles “Infinitif” + -aient
Conditional mood in French, the predominant part of verbs belonging to the 3rd group, forms the conditional mood according to the rule.
Exceptions:
Verbs that end in -re lose the -e at the end.
For example: apprendre → tu apprendrais
A number of verbs of the 3rd group form this mood from the stem futur simple: See the picture.
Conditional mood in French: conditional mood in the past tense.
Conditionnel passé has 2 forms.
Conditionnel passé 1st form is widely used in modern language. This form is formed using auxiliary verb(avoir /être) used in Conditionnel present + main verb in the form participe passé.
The verbs avoir/être are irregular and their conjugation in the Conditionnel present must be remembered:
Conditionnel passé is used to express:
- Regrets about what didn’t happen:
Nous n'aurions pas dû ce faire! - We shouldn't have done that!
— Hypotheses (what could happen in the past):
Il aurait pu être acteur! - He could be an actor!
- Action possible, expected, which could happen.
— In conditional sentences, this mood is used in the main clause. In this case, the subordinate clause indicates a condition that refers to time that has already passed. The action expressed by the Conditionnel passé could, under certain conditions, have happened in the past, but never happened and will not happen again:
Si j"avais fini, on aurait pu partir. - If I had finished, we could have left.
Conditionnel passé II form is formed using auxiliary verbs (avoir/être) in the subjonctif imparfait + participe passé of the main verb.
The verbs avoir/être are irregular and their conjugation in subjonctif imparfait must be remembered:
Conditionnel passé of the 1st form, like the 2nd, is used to express an action that, under certain conditions, could have happened in the past, but did not happen. The main difference between the 2nd form and the 1st is that the 2nd form is not used in colloquial speech. It is a literary and more elevated version of the 1st form.
In French, in the subordinate clause the conditions (after the conjunction si - if) the future tense and conditional tenses are not used.
If a Russian phrase does not contain a particle would, construction No. 1 is used. If there is such a particle in a sentence, then in French there are 4 possible constructions Nos. 2-5; the choice of tense and mood will depend on the temporal relations between the actions in the main and subordinate clauses.
1. Si + present; futur simple / present / impératif
The action expressed in the main clause is real and will occur after the condition from the subordinate clause is fulfilled. In this case, Futur simple is used in the main sentence, and Présent in the subordinate clause.
Si tu me l'expliques, je resterai. — If you explain this to me, I will stay.
The action expressed in the main clause is real and occurs simultaneously with the action from the conditional clause. In this case, Présent is used both in the main clause and in the subordinate clause.
Si nous travaillons beaucoup, nous sommes fatugués. — If we work hard, we get tired.
The action expressed in the main clause is an incentive to do something and occurs against the background of the implementation of the action from the conditional subordinate clause. In this case, it is used in the main clause and Présent in the subordinate clause.
Si tu vas au magasin, achete du pain. — If you go to the store, buy bread.
2. Si + imparfait; conditionnel present
If we are talking about an action that may take place in the present or future if some condition is fulfilled, then in the main sentence the verb is placed in Conditionnel présent Imparfait.
Si j'avais le temps, je le ferais. — If I had time, I would do it.
Je le ferais, si j'avais le temps demain. — I would do itif I had time tomorrow.
3. Si + plus-que-parfait; conditionnel passé
If we are talking about an action that could have happened in the past, but did not happen (and will not happen), then Conditionnel passé is used in the main sentence, and in the subordinate clause (after si - if) - in Plus-que-parfait.
Si j'avais eu le temps hier, je l'aurais fait. — If I had time yesterday, I would have done it.
4. Si + plus-que-parfait; conditionnel present
If the action of the subordinate clause refers to the past, and the action of the main clause refers to the present, Plus-que-parfait is used in the subordinate clause, and in the main clause - Conditionnel present.
S'il avait voulu alors, il serait maintenant avec nous. — If he had wanted then, he would have been with us now.
On pourrait faire cette promenade ensemble si on les avait prévenus d’avance. — We could go for a walk together now if we warned them in advance.
5. Si + imparfait; conditionnel passé
If the action of the subordinate clause refers to the present, and the action of the main clause refers to the past, the subordinate clause uses
Initially, a division should be made, since the conditional mood is a general concept. There are Conditionnel présent and Conditionnel passé, which we will consider separately. Each of these forms is based on forms of the future tense, which we will also analyze in more detail so that everything becomes extremely clear. Let's start with the conditional mood of the present tense.
Conditionnel present
Can express assumption, doubt.
- It is used both in writing and in oral speech.
- Its use is possible both in complex and in simple short sentences.
- The intended action refers either to the present moment or to a moment in the future.
For example:
Ce serait étrange d'en penser maintenant. It would be strange to think about it now.
Tu voudrais les appeler demain? Would you like to call them tomorrow?
Conditionnel présent is distinguished from Futur dans le passé by the tense used in the context. For example:
Present or future tense is Conditionnel présent.
Marie pense qu'elle pourrait faire ce travail. Marie thinks she could do the job.
The past tense is Futur dans le passé.
Marie a dit qu'elle pourrait faire ce travail. Marie said she could do the job.
So, the meaning and forms of formation of the conditional mood. Conditionnel présent has the same forms as the French tense Futur dans le passé: for example, je préférerais - for the first group, je finirais - for the second group, je recevrais - for verbs of the third group. Now let's look at Futur dans le passé in more detail.
Futur dans le passé is a tense form that is formed from the initial form of the verb, that is, the infinitive, by adding the endings of the French tense imparfait:
- ions,
- aient.
This tense is applicable to express a future event or action when the verb expressing it is in a subordinate clause, while the past tense verb is used in the main clause. Denotes a future event in relation to a moment in the past. For example:
Elle a dit qu'elle viendrait dimanche. She said she would arrive on Sunday.
There are also some deviations from the rules that are worth remembering, for example the verb envoyer changes its stem to the future tense envoyer – enverr. For most verbs of the 3rd group, this rule applies, but those that end in -re discard the final letter –e, for example: attendre - j’attendrais. And some verbs of the same 3rd group completely change their base. Let's look at them:
- aller-ir,
- venir-viendr,
- vouloir-voudr,
- voir - verr,
- pouvoir - pourr,
- devoir - devr,
- falloir - faudr,
- faire-fer,
- pleuvoir - pleuvr,
- savoir - saur,
- avoir - aur,
- être-ser,
- mourir - mourr.
Group 1 verb conjugation
Group 3 verb conjugation:
Conditionnel present Futur dans le passé
Je pense qu'il pourrait faire ce dessin. I think he could have done this drawing.
Il a dit qu'il pourrait faire ce dessin. He said he could make this drawing.
Conditionnel passé
Me has the same forms as Futur antérieur dans le passé: l'aurais préféré - for verbs of the 1st group, l'aurais fini - for the 2nd group, and, finally, an example of a verb of the 3rd group - l'aurais recu.
The action refers to the past moment: Il serait déjà parti. He apparently already left.
For a better understanding, let's look at the time Futur antérieur dans le passé. It represents a complex future tense in the past, and is formed by putting the auxiliary verb avoir or être into the form of the above tense futur dans le passé, and after it adding the past participle - participe passé. Let's see exactly what this looks like using an example:
The future antérieur dans le passé is most often used in subordinate clauses or when agreeing on tenses. Just like futur antérieur, futur antérieur dans le passé indicates an action in the future if it precedes another in the future. It is most often used when agreeing tenses, so in this case the main clause should be in the past tense. For example:
Marie a dit que Marc arriverait dès qu’il aurait envoyé la lettre. Marie said that Mark would return as soon as he sent the letter.
Conditionnel passé differs from Futur antérieur dans le passé directly by the context of the sentence itself.
Conditionnel passé, its context is in the past or present tense in a complex or simple sentence without subordinate clauses.
A mon avis elle aurait pu dire ce phrase il y a trois jours. In my opinion, she could have said this three years ago.
Futur antérieur dans le passé, its context in the past tense, where there is a complex clause.
Marie a dit qu'elle ferait ce dessin dès qu'elle en aurait fini un autre. Marie said that she would do this drawing after she finished the first one.
Conditionnel simple sentence
Can show desire, verbs are used: vouloir, aimer, préférer, désirer, etc.
Je voudrais voyager. I would like to go on a trip.
Can express a wish or request, wish. Verbs used: pouvoir, devoir, vouloir, etc.
Pourriez-vous me laisser seul? Could you please leave me alone?
Indicates the assumption of something.
Ce serait au mois au week-end. It will probably be over the weekend.
Use in a complex sentence
The conditional clause is introduced using the conjunction si. Futur simple, as well as Conditionnel, have no place to exist after this union!! The condition is limited to unreal and real action. The real action in the sentence has the following formula:
Si - Present - Fntur simple
For example:
Sil elle travaille bien, elle réussira. If she works hard, she will achieve success.
An unreal condition is associated with the present or future time and operates according to the following scheme:
Si — Imparfait — Conditionnel present
For example:
Si elle travaillait bien, elle réussirait. If she worked hard, she would be successful.
Also, an unreal condition can be associated with the past tense, then the scheme is as follows:
Si - Plus-que-parfait - Conditionnel passé
Si l'année passée elle avait bien travaillé, elle aurait réussi. If she had worked hard this past year, she would have been successful.
The topic of the conditional mood is very large and complex. You will have to devote a lot of time to studying it in order to understand and learn to use verb forms without prompts and peeking at the rules. We hope we helped you, now it's up to you. Good luck!