The French conditional corresponds to English would + infinitive (I would go, she would buy). In both languages, the conditional is used to make polite requests (I would like a cup of coffee) or to express what would happen if a certain condition, which may or may not be expressed in the sentence, were met: If I had the money, I would go to France. What would you do (if you were in my place)?
Be careful not to confuse the conditional would expressing a hypothetical action (If I had the time, I would travel) with the would that describes repeated action in the past and is translated with the imperfect tense:
The conditional mood has two tenses, the present conditional and the past conditional.
To form the present conditional, one takes the future stem of the verb and adds the endings of the imperfect tense (-ais, -ais, -ait, -ions, -iez, -aient).
As in the simple future, the ending of the present conditional is always preceded by the letter r. If the stem of the verb ends in r, there will be two [R] sounds before the conditional ending: je rentrerais (I would go home), je montrerais (I would show), je rencontrerais (I would meet).
The stem of both regular and irregular verbs is the same in the future and in the conditional. It is the ending that differentiates the conditional from the future.
Note that the pronunciation of the first-person singular in the future (je donnerai) and of the first-person singular in the present conditional (je donnerais) is identical: [
d
nRε].
The same spelling changes that occur in the future also appear in the conditional: acheter: j’achèterais, appeler: j’appellerais, espérer: j’espérerais, nettoyer: je nettoierais.
EXERCICE
10•1
Comment dit-on en français?
1. We would eat. ______________________________________
2. I would not buy this rug. ______________________________________
3. You (fam.) would ask. ______________________________________
4. I would try. ______________________________________
5. They (masc.) would work hard. ______________________________________
6. I would be bored. ______________________________________
7. We would stay. ______________________________________
8. He would bring his grandchildren. ______________________________________
9. You (pol.) would help. ______________________________________
10. He would remember. ______________________________________
11. You (pol.) would succeed. ______________________________________
12. She would obey. ______________________________________
13. I would blush. ______________________________________
14. You (fam.) would choose. ______________________________________
15. They (fem.) would lose. ______________________________________
16. I wouldn’t answer. ______________________________________
Some irregular verbs have regular stems (the entire infinitive or, with verbs ending in -re, the infinitive minus final e). Irregular verbs and their irregular stems in the conditional are shown in boldface in the list below. Note that the stems are the same as those for the simple future.
The present conditional of the impersonal expression il y a (there is/are) is il y aurait (there would be).
The present conditional of the impersonal expression il vaut mieux (it is better) is il vaudrait mieux (it would be better).
Three irregular verbs have a special meaning in the present conditional.
vouloir: je voudrais = I would like
pouvoir: je pourrais = I could
devoir: je devrais = I ought to, should
EXERCICE
10•2
Traduisez en français les mots entre parenthèses.
1. (We would go) ______________ à la piscine.
2. (She wouldn’t have) ______________ d’argent.
3. (There would be) ______________ une guerre.
4. (He would be) ______________ triste.
5. (I would drink) ______________ du jus d’orange.
6. (Would you [fam.] run) ______________ vite?
7. (We would send) ______________ un fax.
8. (What would you [fam.] do) ______________ à ma place?
9. (It would be necessary) ______________ y aller.
10. (I would die) ______________ de peur.
11. (It would rain) ______________ peut-être.
12. (You [fam.] would take) ______________ le train.
13. (You [pol.] would receive) ______________ un reçu.
14. (He would know) ______________ la réponse.
15. (Who would come) ______________ chez vous?
As in English, the present conditional expresses a possibility or eventuality.
Contrary to English, the present conditional is always used after au cas où (in case).
The present conditional is used instead of the present indicative to soften a statement or a question. It expresses
1. a polite request (with verbs such as vouloir, pouvoir, avoir, and savoir).
2. a (subdued) wish or desire (with verbs such as aimer and vouloir).
The desire can be reinforced by adding bien to the verb in the present conditional.
3. an obligation, a suggestion, or advice (most often with the verb devoir, which expresses should, ought to in the present conditional).
EXERCICE
10•3
Comment dit-on en français?
1. That (Ce) would be a shame (dommage). ______________________________________
2. That (Ça) wouldn’t surprise (étonner) me. ______________________________________
3. That (Ça) would be (coûter) too expensive. ______________________________________
4. It would be better not to say anything (ne rien dire). ______________________________________
5. There would be riots (des émeutes [f.pl.]). ______________________________________
6. Here is my phone number in case you (fam.) need me. ______________________________________
7. In case you (pol.) change your mind (changer d’avis), let me know (faites-le-moi savoir). ______________________________________
8. What would you (pol.) like? ______________________________________
9. I would like a piece of strawberry tart. ______________________________________
10. Would you (pol.) like a window seat or an aisle seat? ______________________________________
11. She would really like to speak French fluently. ______________________________________
12. Would you (pol.) have a room for two people? ______________________________________
13. Would you (pol.) know the address and phone number (les coordonnées [f.pl.]) of Mr. Avenel? ______________________________________
14. Could we see the menu, please? ______________________________________
15. Could I have rice instead of (à la place de) the French fries? ______________________________________
16. Could I speak to Mrs. Duval? ______________________________________
17. Could you (fam.) close the window? ______________________________________
18. Could you (pol.) tell me where the nearest subway station (la station de métro la plus proche) is? ______________________________________
19. That should be forbidden (interdit). ______________________________________
20. I ought to go to the hairdresser (chez le coiffeur). ______________________________________
EXERCICE
10•4
Make the following sentences more polite by replacing the present tense of the verbs in italic with the present conditional.
1. Est-ce que je peux vous poser une question? __________________
2. Pouvez-vous parler plus lentement, s’il vous plaît? __________________
3. Voulez-vous me rendre un service? __________________
4. Je veux avoir l’addition, s’il vous plaît. __________________
5. Pardon Madame, avez-vous la monnaie de cinquante euros? __________________
6. Savez-vous où je peux acheter des fleurs? __________________
As its name indicates, the present conditional is mainly used to describe what would happen under a certain condition. This condition (which is not fulfilled at the moment of the statement but could be fulfilled in the future) is usually introduced by si = if. In such sentences, the verb in the si-clause is in the imperfect, the verb in the main clause is in the present conditional. The si-clause can be at the beginning or at the end of the sentence.
Comment dit-on en français?
1. If I had a lot of money, I would travel around the world (faire le tour du monde). ______________________________________
2. What would you (pol.) do if you won the lottery? ______________________________________
3. Where would you (fam.) go if you had a month off (un mois de congé)? ______________________________________
4. If I were ill, I would stay in bed. ______________________________________
5. I would be happy if you (fam.) came to my party. ______________________________________
6. If she had the time, she would clean (ranger) her room. ______________________________________
7. If I were you (toi), I would stop smoking. ______________________________________
8. If we went to France, we would see many beautiful cathedrals. ______________________________________
9. If he saw a black cat, he would turn around (faire demi-tour). ______________________________________
10. If they (masc.) had a satellite dish (une parabole), they would get (recevoir) this program. ______________________________________
EXERCICE
10•6
Qu’est-ce que vous feriez si vous étiez très riche? Qu’est-ce que vous ne feriez pas?
Si j’étais très riche,…
je ______________________________________________,
je ______________________________________________
et je ____________________________________________.
EXERCICE
10•7
Complétez les phrases suivantes personnellement en utilisant le conditionnel présent.
1. Si j’étais fatigué(e), _______________________________.
2. S’il pleuvait, _______________________________.
3. Si j’avais la grippe, _______________________________.
4. Si j’étais le président des États-Unis, _______________________________.
5. Si j’habitais en France, _______________________________.
6. Si je n’apprenais pas le français, _______________________________.
7. Si je rencontrais des Français, _______________________________.
8. Si je faisais le voyage de mes rêves, _______________________________.
9. Si j’allais à la plage, _______________________________.
10. Si j’avais les moyens (If I could afford it), _______________________________.
EXERCICE
10•8
Si c’était à refaire, qu’est-ce que vous feriez différemment? (If you had to do it all over again, what would you do differently? Say what you would do and what you would not do. Use the present conditional and fill in all lines.)
Si c’était à refaire, je… ___________________________
EXERCICE
10•9
J’ai les problèmes suivants. Dites ce que vous feriez à ma place.
Exemple: J’ai besoin d’argent. Si j’avais besoin d’argent, je travaillerais.
1. Je suis fauché(e). Si ___________________, je ___________________.
2. Je suis déprimé(e). Si ___________________, je ___________________.
3. Ma voiture est en panne. Si ___________________, je ___________________.
4. Je ne réussis pas à l’examen. Si ___________________, je ___________________.
5. J’ai mal aux dents. Si ___________________, je ___________________.
6. Je vois mal. Si ___________________, je ___________________.
7. J’ai froid. Si ___________________, je ___________________.
The present conditional is used (as in English) in a subordinate clause after the conjunction que (that) and after si (whether) to express an action or situation that occurred later in time than the verb in the main clause, if this verb is in a past tense. This is sometimes called indirect discourse. Here, the conditional indicates a future action in the past.
EXERCICE
10•10
Comment dit-on en français?
1. I didn’t think that it would snow. ______________________________________
2. I believed that this wouldn’t work. ______________________________________
3. We were sure that you (pol.) would agree. ______________________________________
4. He had promised that he would call. ______________________________________
5. They (masc.) didn’t think that you (pol.) would remember. ______________________________________
6. She didn’t know whether she would have the time to do it. ______________________________________
7. He asked me whether I could help him. ______________________________________
8. I was wondering whether there would be fireworks. ______________________________________
Anne parle de ses résolutions pour la nouvelle année. Traduisez ce qu’elle dit.
In a conversation with my doctor at the end of December, I had mentioned that I wanted to lose weight and remain healthy this year. I was wondering whether my New Year’s resolutions would come true.
“What should I do?” I had asked Dr. Martin. He answered that if he were in my place, he would go on a diet. He would eat less, and he would exercise more. He would drink only skim milk, Diet Coke, and three bottles of water per day. He would avoid sweets and alcoholic beverages. Instead, he would eat lots of fruit and vegetables. He would not take the car but the bike to go to places, except if it rained. And he told me that instead of watching television, he would take walks, he would swim, and he would play tennis every day.
When I left the doctor’s office, I was depressed. I knew that I wouldn’t be able to change my eating habits. I would follow Dr. Martin’s advice if I weren’t so lazy.
When used in the present conditional,
aimer mieux (+ infinitive) expresses would rather.
faire mieux (+ de + infinitive) expresses had better.
EXERCICE
10•12
Comment dit-on en français?
1. She’d rather chat with her friends than study. ______________________________________
2. Wouldn’t you (fam.) rather travel? ______________________________________
3. You (pol.) had better follow his advice. ______________________________________
4. She had better listen to him. ______________________________________
5. They (masc.) had better leave. ______________________________________
6. You (fam.) had better wait. ______________________________________
The present conditional describes a present action or situation, the certainty of which has not been confirmed. Since it is widely used by the news media (radio, TV, press) to report alleged facts, this use of the conditional is referred to as the “conditional of the press.” (For this meaning, English uses the adverbs supposedly, allegedly, presumably, apparently with the verb in the present tense.)
Il y a eu un tremblement de terre en Asie hier soir. Il y aurait des milliers de victimes.
There was an earthquake in Asia last night. There are presumably thousands of victims.
D’après une étude récente, les protestants seraient plus pratiquants que les catholiques.
According to a recent study, Protestants allegedly go to church more often than Catholics.
EXERCICE
10•13
Traduisez en français les mots entre parenthèses.
1. Dans ce pays, vingt pour cent des adultes (are allegedly) ______________ illettrés.
2. Parmi les victimes, (there are supposedly) ______________ dix enfants.
3. Selon les médecins, le blessé (is presumably [feeling] better) ______________.
4. D’après les médias, les speakers de la télévision (apparently earn) ______________ plus d’argent que les vedettes de cinéma.
5. Les étudiants et les ouvriers (are presumably on strike [faire grève]) ______________.
6. L’incendie (is allegedly) ______________ dû à une fuite (leak) de gaz.
The English equivalent of the French past conditional is would have + past participle (I would have gone, she would have said). It is used for actions or situations that would have happened but did not, because something prevented them from taking place (we would have gone out if it hadn’t rained).
The past conditional is a compound tense formed by using the present conditional of avoir or être + the past participle of the verb.
The past conditional follows the same rules as the passé composé as far as the agreement of the past participle is concerned.
Three irregular verbs have a special meaning in the past conditional.
vouloir: j’aurais voulu = I would have liked
devoir: j’aurais dû = I should have
pouvoir: j’aurais pu = I could have
Note that in French aurais voulu, aurais dû, and aurais pu are followed by the infinitive whereas in English would have, should have, and could have are followed by the past participle.
The past conditional of il y a (there is/are) is il y aurait eu (there would have been), the past conditional of il faut (it is necessary) is il aurait fallu (it would have been necessary), and the past conditional of il vaut mieux (it is better) is il aurait mieux valu (it would have been better).
EXERCICE
10•14
Comment dit-on en français?
1. I would have been sad. ______________________________________
2. She would have preferred to live in the country (à la campagne). ______________________________________
3. We would have stayed longer, but we had to leave. ______________________________________
4. They (fem.) would have laughed. ______________________________________
5. Who would have believed that he would resign? ______________________________________
6. I would have gone to bed earlier. ______________________________________
7. In your place (À votre place), I wouldn’t have said anything. ______________________________________
8. You (pol.) would have died. ______________________________________
9. He would have been afraid. ______________________________________
10. Would you (fam.) have come? ______________________________________
11. She would have lost. ______________________________________
12. It would have been better to wait. ______________________________________
As in English, the past conditional expresses a possibility or eventuality in the past.
Contrary to English, the past conditional is used after au cas où (in case).
Au cas où vous auriez trouvé mes lunettes, pourriez-vous les mettre sur mon bureau?
In case you found my glasses, could you put them on my desk?
The past conditional frequently expresses a reproach or regret about an action that was not performed in the past (often with the verbs devoir, which expresses should have in the past conditional; vouloir, which expresses would have liked in the past conditional; and pouvoir, which expresses could have in the past conditional).
EXERCICE
10•15
Comment dit-on en français?
1. Would you (fam.) have seen my handbag by any chance (par hasard)? ______________________________________
2. In case you (pol.) didn’t notice it, it is snowing. ______________________________________
3. She should have come earlier. ______________________________________
4. You (fam.) should have asked. ______________________________________
5. You (pol.) should have left a tip. ______________________________________
6. We should have been more careful. ______________________________________
7. You (pol.) shouldn’t have spent so much money. ______________________________________
8. They (masc.) would have liked to sit down. ______________________________________
9. I would have liked to know where she was born. ______________________________________
10. She would have liked to become a flight attendant. ______________________________________
11. We could have had an accident. ______________________________________
12. That could have happened to anyone (n’importe qui). ______________________________________
EXERCICE
10•16
Pretend that you are a grandmother or grandfather looking back on your life and expressing some regrets. Write what you should have done and what you would have liked to do.
Exemple: J’aurais dû apprendre plusieurs langues.
J’aurais voulu (aimé) partir en vacances tous les ans.
The past conditional also describes what would have happened in the past under a certain condition. This condition (mentioned in a si [if]-clause) was not met and can no longer be fulfilled. In such sentences, the verb in the si-clause is in the pluperfect, the verb in the main clause is in the past conditional. The si-clause can be at the beginning or at the end of the sentence.
EXERCICE
10•17
Comment dit-on en français?
1. If I had known, I wouldn’t have come. ______________________________________
2. She would have earned more money if she had worked overtime (faire des heures supplémentaires). ______________________________________
3. If the weather had been good last weekend, we would have gone camping. ______________________________________
4. If you (fam.) hadn’t drunk so much wine, you wouldn’t have had a headache. ______________________________________
5. If it hadn’t rained, I would have gone swimming. ______________________________________
6. If I had heard my alarm clock, I would have woken up on time. ______________________________________
7. If she had read Internet for Dummies (Internet pour les nuls), she would have known how to surf the Net. ______________________________________
The past conditional is used (as in English) in a subordinate clause after the conjunction que (that) and after si (whether) to express an action or situation that occurred later in time than the verb in the main clause, if this verb is in a past tense. This is also called indirect discourse. Here, the conditional indicates a future action in the past.
EXERCICE
10•18
Comment dit-on en français?
1. She thought that she would have finished her work before noon. ______________________________________
2. We knew that we would have returned before them. ______________________________________
3. I didn’t know whether I could have done it. ______________________________________
4. They (masc.) believed that we would have been angry. ______________________________________
5. I was wondering whether I could have left. ______________________________________
The past conditional describes a past action or situation the certainty of which has not been confirmed. Like the present conditional it is widely used by the news media to report alleged facts. (English uses adverbs such as supposedly, allegedly, and presumably with the verb in the past tense.)
EXERCICE
10•19
Comment dit-on en français?
1. He allegedly drowned. ______________________________________
2. She allegedly left her husband. ______________________________________
3. They (masc.) presumably tried to kidnap the child. ______________________________________
4. The burglars supposedly took all the (tous les) computers. ______________________________________
5. He supposedly died of a heart attack (une crise cardiaque). ______________________________________
6. The explosion presumably caused five deaths. ______________________________________
7. Forty million readers allegedly read the novel The Da Vinci Code. ______________________________________
8. Lightning (La foudre) supposedly killed four people. ______________________________________
A conditional sentence usually consists of two parts
1. a clause introduced by si = if (si-clause) that states a condition and
2. a clause (the main clause) that states the consequence or result of this condition.
The conditional can never be used in the si-clause; it only appears in the main clause.
The three most common tense sequences in conditional sentences are:
Note: Si followed by il and ils is elided (s’il, s’ils); si followed by elle, elles, and on is not elided (si elle, si elles, si on).
EXERCICE
10•20
Comment dit-on en français?
1. If you (fam.) don’t tell me the truth, I will get angry. ______________________________________
2. If we hurry, we will arrive on time. ______________________________________
3. If I knew him, I would speak to him. ______________________________________
4. If they (masc.) had gone to the cocktail party (au cocktail), they would have had a good time. ______________________________________
EXERCICE
10•21
Remplissez les tirets avec la forme correcte du verbe entre parenthèses.
1. Si vous allez au théâtre la semaine prochaine, vous (voir) ______________ une bonne pièce.
2. Si j’ai le temps, je (aller) ______________ à la campagne.
3. S’il pleuvait, je (mettre) ______________ un imperméable.
4. Je (travailler) ______________ très dur si j’étais le président des États-Unis.
5. Si vous aviez le temps, qu’est-ce que vous (faire) ______________ ?
6. Si j’avais été fatigué(e), je (se coucher) ______________.
7. Si Napoléon avait eu un fils avec Joséphine, il (ne pas épouser) ______________ Marie-Louise.
8. Si on m’avait dit que je vivrais à l’étranger un jour, je (ne pas le croire) ______________.
9. Si vous aviez pris un taxi, vous (arriver) ______________à temps.
10. Quelles langues parlerais-tu si tu (être) ______________ suisse?
11. Avec qui seriez-vous sorti si vous (avoir) ______________ le choix?
12. Si mes fleurs (être) ______________ fanées, je les jetterai.
Finissez personnellement les phrases suivantes. Faites attention à la concordance des temps ( time sequence ).
1. Si j’ai l’argent, je ______________.
2. Si je faisais un héritage, je ______________.
3. S’il avait fait mauvais hier, ______________.
4. Je serais content(e) si ______________.
5. Si ______________, j’arrêterais de travailler.
6. Je viendrais si ______________.
7. Je serais venu(e) si ______________.
8. Nous nous serions promenés si ______________.
9. Qu’est-ce que vous feriez si ______________?
10. Qu’est-ce que vous auriez fait si ______________?
Important note: French does not allow the future or conditional in the si-clause when si means if. Of the four tenses that may be used in the si-clause, the present tense, the imperfect, and the pluperfect are the most common.
If however si has the meaning whether, it may be followed by the future and by the conditional. This is another example of indirect discourse.
Note:
After si (whether), the future tense expresses a future action or situation when the introductory verb (se demander in the examples above) is in the present tense; the conditional expresses a future action or situation when the introductory verb is in a past tense.
Note also that the clause introduced by si (whether) is always at the end of the sentence.
Remplissez les tirets avec la forme correcte du verbe entre parenthèses. (Check whether si means “if” or “whether” before choosing the verb form.)
1. S’il y (avoir) ______________ un tremblement de terre, nous aurons peur.
2. S’il y (avoir) ______________ un tremblement de terre, nous aurions peur.
3. S’il y (avoir) ______________ un tremblement de terre, nous aurions eu peur.
4. Nous ne savons pas s’il y (avoir) ______________ un tremblement de terre.
5. Elle voulait savoir s’il y (avoir) ______________ un tremblement de terre.
English would does not always correspond to a French conditional.
1. If would means used to, i.e., if it describes a repeated, habitual action in the past, it is translated with the imperfect of the verb in question.
2. If would expresses a formal request, it is occasionally translated with the present indicative of vouloir.
3. If would is used negatively to express unwillingness, it is translated with the passé composé of vouloir.
EXERCICE
10•24
Comment dit-on en français?
1. Each time I saw him, he would pretend not to recognize (reconnaître) me. ______________________________________
2. Would you please (pol.) follow me? ______________________________________
3. Would you please (pol.) forgive me? ______________________________________
4. I gave her advice (des conseils [m.pl.]), but she wouldn’t listen. ______________________________________
5. I told him that several times, but he wouldn’t believe me. ______________________________________
6. I asked her to give me a hand (un coup de main), but she wouldn’t. ______________________________________
English could
1. Could is translated into French with the present conditional of pouvoir when it refers to the future, i.e., when it means would be able to.
But: Since the conditional is not allowed after si meaning if, the imperfect of pouvoir must be used to express could in conditional (hypothetical) sentences.
2. Could is translated (depending on the context) with the imperfect or passé composé of pouvoir if it refers to the past, i.e., when it means was/were able to.
EXERCICE
10•25
Comment dit-on en français?
1. Could I ask you (pol.) a question? ______________________________________
2. That could happen (arriver). ______________________________________
3. They (fem.) would come if they could. ______________________________________
4. We would be happy if you (pol.) could work tomorrow. ______________________________________
5. I asked him whether he could (= would be able to) do it. ______________________________________
6. Unfortunately, I couldn’t reach you (fam.) (joindre) yesterday. ______________________________________
7. Be (pol.) careful, the animal could become dangerous. ______________________________________
