Second Conditional: What Would You Do? (B1)
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B1 ⏱ 5 minutes
Second Conditional: What Would You Do?
🔎 What Is the Second Conditional?
The second conditional describes imaginary or hypothetical situations — things that are not true now, or very unlikely to happen.
| If-clause (condition) | Main clause (result) |
|---|---|
| If + past simple | would + base verb |
| If I lived in Sydney now, | I would visit Bondi Beach every day. |
| If she spoke French, | she would enjoy living in Paris. |
Important: Use were instead of was for all subjects in formal writing:
If I were a chef, I would open a restaurant in Chittagong.
📚 Examples
- If I lived in Bangladesh now, I would miss the French countryside terribly.
- If she spoke Bengali, she would understand my family’s jokes.
- What would you do if you had one free year to travel?
- If I were a student again, I would study French from day one.
- They wouldn’t move abroad if they didn’t have the opportunity.
🔎 Structure at a Glance
| Part | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Condition (if-clause) | If + subject + past simple | If I had more time… |
| Result (main clause) | Subject + would + base verb | …I would travel more. |
| Question | What would you do if…? | What would you do if you won the lottery? |
| Negative result | Subject + wouldn’t + base verb | I wouldn’t leave La Réunion. |
👥 Practice Task
Put the verbs in brackets into the correct form for the second conditional.
- If I ________ (have) a week off, I ________ (visit) Bangladesh.
- She ________ (learn) to cook if she ________ (live) alone.
- What ________ you ________ (do) if you ________ (can) speak any language perfectly?
- If he ________ (not / work) so hard, he ________ (have) more free time.
- I ________ (feel) much happier if I ________ (live) near the sea.
👁️ Show Answers
- If I had a week off, I would visit Bangladesh.
- She would learn to cook if she lived alone.
- What would you do if you could speak any language perfectly?
- If he didn’t work so hard, he would have more free time.
- I would feel much happier if I lived near the sea.
💬 Discussion Questions
- What would you do if you could live in any city in the world?
- If you spoke five languages, which would you use most?
- Where would you go if you had a month of holiday right now?
Try to give a full second conditional answer: “If I could live anywhere, I would choose… because…”
Cambridge CELTA course completed — 120 supervised teaching hours and four written assignments validated to the required standard. Independent project. Not affiliated with, endorsed by, or accredited by Cambridge University Press & Assessment. Confers no qualification.
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