Third Conditional Exercises PDFSet 1: Third Conditional Basics: Affirmative & Negative Forms
20 questions·12 min·Answers included·Explanations included
Preview: Questions
Fill in the blank with the correct option.
1.If I ___ earlier, I would have caught the train.
a) leftb) had leftc) would leaved) have left
2.She would have passed the exam if she ___ harder.
a) studiedb) has studiedc) would studyd) had studied
3.If they had arrived on time, they ___ the beginning of the film.
a) would have seenb) would seec) had seend) saw
4.We ___ the match if the weather had been better.
a) had wonb) will winc) would have wond) won
5.If he ___ the map, he wouldn't have got lost.
a) checkedb) has checkedc) would checkd) had checked
... and 15 more questions in the PDF
Preview: Answers
1.had left
2.had studied
3.would have seen
4.would have won
5.had checked
... and 15 more answers in the PDF
Preview: Explanations
1."had left"(b)
In the third conditional, the if-clause uses past perfect: 'If I had left'. This describes a past unreal situation — you didn't leave earlier, so you missed the train.
2."had studied"(d)
The if-clause uses past perfect even when it comes after the result clause: 'if she had studied'. She didn't study hard — this is an imaginary past situation.
3."would have seen"(a)
The result clause in the third conditional uses 'would have + past participle': 'they would have seen'. They didn't arrive on time, so they missed the beginning.
4."would have won"(c)
The result clause uses 'would have + past participle': 'We would have won'. The weather wasn't good, so they didn't win the match. Never use 'will' in third conditional sentences.
5."had checked"(d)
The if-clause uses past perfect: 'If he had checked'. He didn't check the map, so he got lost. The negative result clause 'wouldn't have got lost' shows what would have been different.
... and 15 more explanations in the PDF
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