Third Conditional

Third Conditional

Function

Estructure

Perfect conditional

The verbal time of the proposition "If", is the past perfect.

The principal proposition can be the past conditional or the past continue conditional.

This conditional express a imaginnary situation with a condition located in the past, and the consecuence of this in the past too, because is too late to do the condition or the consecuence. It implies regret for have done have not done something in the past.

For example, we could say a sentence of the third conditional of two ways, doesn´t matter the order:

If you had worked harder, you would have passed the exam

You would have passed the exam, if you had worked harder

Both sentences means:

"Si hubieras estudiado más duro, hubieras pasado el examen", or "Hubieras pasado el examen, si hubieras trabajado más duro "

For example:

If I had known you were coming I would have baked a cake. (But I didn't know and I didn't bake a cake.)

It means:

"Si hubiera sabido que vendrías, habría horneado un pastel" (Pero no sabía y no horneé un pastel.)

The perfect conditional of any verb is composed for three elements:

would+have+past participle

In other structures, have+past participle is denominated "perfect infinitive. "

Usually, the perfect conditional is the same for any pronoun, in the question, affirmative or negative sentence

An example with the verb "go". The past participle of "go" is "gone

I would have gone. You would have gone. He would have gone

I wouldn't have gone You wouldn't have gone. He wouldn't have gone

Would I have gone?. Wouldn't you have gone?. Would he have gone?