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Si

 

 

• When you want to express what will or would happen if something else occurs or occurred, your sentence will have 2 parts:

 

• The condition, expressed by si plus a verb in the present, imperfect, or pluperfect (never the conditional).

 

• The result will be stated in the present, future, present conditional, or past conditional.

 

 

• The sequence of the 2 clauses in not important. You can begin your sentence with si or state the condition first, or start with the main clause to state the result first.

  • (a) si + present + (b) present or future

 

 

• When the condition expressed in the if-clause (a) is considered as really existing or likely to be true, the present tense is used and the result (b) is expressed in the present or future.

 

(a) Si tu refuses de voyager, (b) tu ne connaîtras jamais le monde.

(If you refuse to travel, you will never get to know the world.)

 

(b) Il nous prêtera sa motoneige (a) si nous rentrons avant la nuit.

(He will lend us his snowmobile if we are back before nightfall.)

 

 

• Si j’ai du courage, (b) je ferai du parapente.

(If I am brave enough, I will go hang-gliding.)

 

 

• Nous faisons du ski de fond le week-end (a) s’il y a de la neige.

(We go cross-country skiing on the weekends if there is snow.)

 

 

• When the condition expressed in the if-clause if considered unlikely to become true, or is hypothetical or contrary to the fact, the pattern is also similar to English.

 

 

Si+ imperfect + (b) present conditional- The result is still possible.

or

Si + pluperfect + (b) past conditional- The time frame is the past; the result cannot be changed.

 

 

• It is also possible to use the pluperfect followed or preceded by the present conditional if you want to say (a) if this had happened (in the past) (b) something would happen (present tense).