Mixed Conditionals

Exercises

Explanation

We use mixed conditionals to talk about:

• how a past action affects the present, or

• how a present situation affected the past.

1. Why we use mixed conditionals

Use mixed conditionals when one single conditional type is not enough.

Example idea:

Something changed in the past → life is different now
or
A present situation → explains what did not happen before

2. Past condition → present result

(Third Conditional + Second Conditional)

Form: If + Past Perfect, would / could / might + base verb

Meaning:

A past situation (that did not happen) affects the present.

Examples:

• If I had studied computer science, I would work in IT now.
  (I didn’t study it, so my job is different.)

• If she had taken the earlier flight, she would be here already.

• If they had saved more money, they could live closer to the city.

3. Present condition → past result

(Second Conditional + Third Conditional)

Form: If + Past Simple, would / could / might + have + past participle

Meaning:

A present situation explains why something did not happen in the past.

Examples:

• If he were more confident, he would have applied for the promotion.

• If I spoke Japanese, I would have accepted that job in Tokyo.

• If we lived closer to the office, we would have arrived on time yesterday.

4. Important things to remember

The condition is always unreal
The time in the if-clause and the result are different
Always choose verb forms based on meaning, not habit

5. Common mistakes to avoid

Using the same time in both parts
Mixing verb forms randomly
Forgetting have in past results

6. Quick comparison