The Conditional
Duh duh DUUUUUHHHHH!
What is the conditional?
• The French conditional is very similar to the
English conditional mood. It describes events
that are not guaranteed to occur; often they
are dependent on certain conditions.
• While the French conditional mood has a full
set of conjugations, the English equivalent is
just the modal verb “would” + the main verb.
• The French conditional is mainly used in
“if…then” statements (si clauses) to express
what would happen if a condition were met.
• N.B. The conditional is in the result (then) part
of the clause, not the clause that follows si (if).
• Ex. Il mangerait s’il avait faim.
• Si nous étudiions, nous serions plus
intelligents.
Vouloir
• The verb vouloir is used in the conditional to
express a polite request.
– Je voudrais une pomme.
– Je voudrais aller avec vous.
• However, you can’t say “si vous voudriez” to
mean “if you would like” because the French
conditional CAN NEVER be used after si.
Aimer
• The verb aimer is used to express a polite
desire, sometimes one that cannot be fulfilled.
• J’aimerais bien le voir!
• J’aimerais y aller, mais je dois travailler.
Conjugation
• The conditional has only one set of endings for
all verbs, and most of them- even those
irregular in the present tense- use their
infinitives as a root. Here are the most
common irregular stems.
• NB These verbs stems should look REALLY
familiar. As they are the same in the future
tense. Which means THEY ALWAYS END IN
R!!!!!
Infinative
Conditional Stem
Aller
Ir-
Avoir
Aur-
Devoir
Devr-
Être
Ser-
Envoyer
Enverr-
Faire
Fer-
Pleuvoir
Pleuvr-
Pouvoir
Pourr-
Recevoir
Recevr-
Savoir
Saur-
Tenir
Tiendr-
Venir
Viendr-
Voir
Verr-
Vouloir
Voudr-
Conjugation
-ais
-ais
-ait
Conditional Endings
-ions
-iez
-aient
WHY DO THESE LOOK FAMILIAR?
Conditional mood in si clauses
• The second conditional expresses something
that is contrary to present fact or unlikely to
occur. Something that would happen if
something else happened.
• Use si + imparfait (stating the condition) +
conditionnel (stating what would have
happened.
Formula
• Si + imparfait + conditional
• OR
• Conditional + si + imparfait
Examples
• Si j’avais le temps, je le ferais.
• Je le ferais si j’avais le temps.
• Si tu étudiais, tu réussirais à l’examen.
• Tu réussirais à l’examen si tu étudiais.
• Si elle vous voyais, elle vous aiderait.
• Elle vous aiderait si elle vous voyait.