First Conditional: real possibility

We are talking about the future. We are thinking about a particular condition or situation in
the future, and the result of this condition. There is a real possibility that this condition will
happen. For example, it is morning. You are at home. You plan to play tennis this afternoon.
But there are some clouds in the sky. Imagine that it rains. What will you do?
IF

If

condition

result

present simple

WILL + base verb

it rains

I will stay at home.

Notice that we are thinking about a future condition. It is not raining yet. But the sky is
cloudy and you think that it could rain. We use the present simple tense to talk about the
possible future condition. We use WILL + base verb to talk about the possible future result.
The important thing about the first conditional is that there is a real possibility that the
condition will happen. Here are some more examples (do you remember the two basic
structures: [IF condition result] and [result IF condition]?):

IF

condition

result

present simple

WILL + base verb

If

I see Mary

I will tell her.

If

Tara is free tomorrow

he will invite her.

If

it rains tomorrow

will you stay at home?

If

it rains tomorrow

what will you do?

result

IF

WILL + base verb

condition
present simple

I will tell Mary

if

I see her.

He will invite Tara

if

she is free tomorrow.

Will you stay at home

if

it rains tomorrow?

What will you do

if

it rains tomorrow?

1. If you
2. We

(not study), you

(die) if we

(fail) the test.

(not get) help soon!

3. If you

(look) in the fridge, you

4. If there

(be) no oil in the engine, the car

5. I

(lend) you my umbrella if you

6. The sea level

7. If you

(find) some cold drinks.

(need) it.

(rise) if the planet

(get) hotter.

(eat) your sandwiches now, you

8. You

(break) down.

(not have) anything for lunch!

(be) safe in an accident if you

9. If he

(save) all his money, he

10. I

(not come) with you if you

(wear) your seatbelt.

(be able to go) on holiday to Canada.

(not bring) John!

11) If I

(go) out tonight, I

(go) to the cinema.

12) If you

(get) back late, I

(be) angry.

13) If we

(not/see) each other tomorrow, we

14) If he

(come) , I

15) If we

(wait) here, we

16) If we

(go) on holiday this summer, we

17) If the weather

(see) each other next week.

(be) surprised.
(be) late.

(not/improve) , we

(go) to Spain.
(not/have) a picnic.

18) They

(go) to the party if they

(be) invited.

19) If I

(not/go) to bed early, I

(be) tired tomorrow.

20) If we

(eat) all this cake, we

(feel) sick.

21) She

(stay) in London if she

(get) a job.

22) If you

(not/want) to go out, I

(cook) dinner at home.

23) I
24) He
25) I

(come) early, if you

(not/get) a better job if he
(buy) a new dress if I

(want).
(not/pass) that exam.
(have) enough money.

26) She

(cook) dinner if you

(go) to the supermarket.

27) They

(go) on holiday if they

(have) time.

28) We

(be) late if we

(not/hurry).

29) She

(take) a taxi if it

(rain).

30) I

(not/go) if you

31) If I

(not/come) with me.

(to study), I

32) If the sun

(to pass) the exams.

(to shine), we

33) If he

(to walk) to the town.

(to have) a temperature, he

34) If my friends

(to come), I

(to see) the doctor.

(to be) very happy.

35) If she

(to earn) a lot of money, she

(to fly) to New York.

36) If we

(to travel) to London, we

(to visit) the museums.

37) If you

(to wear) sandals in the mountains, you

(to slip) on the rocks.

38) If Rita

(to forget) her homework, the teacher

(to give) her a low mark.

39) If they

(to go) to the disco, they

(to listen) to loud music.

40) If you

(to wait) a minute, I

(to ask) my parents.

41. If you

(not give) me an excuse, I

(not be) your friend any more.

42. I

(accept) your excuse only if you

(tell) me the truth.

43. I

(tell) you the truth only if you

44. What

(happen) if everybody

(know) your secret?

45. What

(you/say) if I

(not say) anything?

46. If you

(put) me under pressure, I

(say) anything

47.

(you/go) to the wedding if she (send) you an invitation?

48. If Mark and Sally

49. I

(not tell) anyone else.

(cut) the red wire, the bomb

(receive) a prize if my composition

50. If my boss

(not give) me more work, I

(explode)
(win) the contest
(arrive) home early