شرطی های معکوس و ضمنی

Inverted and Implied Conditionals

Hi everyone. It’s Jennifer here with a lesson on conditional sentences in English. This is just one of several lessons I have on this grammar topic. You can click on the link to see the whole playlist. If you’ve been following me for a while, you’ll know that one thing I like to focus on is the difference between formal and informal English.

In the previous lesson, which was some time ago, I taught the expression “even if it kills me.” It’s a conversational expression. and of course there’s some exaggeration. But that’s rather typical of informal talk. I gave you the example of me playing the piano. There are some pieces I’m learning to play.

A few are really challenging, but I’m going to learn them even if it kills me. So that means I’m going to do it no matter what. I’m determined to make this happen. For homework, I asked you to create your own example with “even if it kills me.” Many of you did this task. I’d like to share just a few examples with everyone. Sherlie wrote: Good example. Let’s just add a period at the end.

Many of you wrote similar goals about learning English. Here’s Gabriel’s. Saddam is an ambitious investor, I think. He wrote: Note that I added the article “the” before “shares” because those are specific from context. George shared an example about a determined traveler.

Finally, Susanna created an example about a past goal. Take a look and note the changes that I’m suggesting. Thank you to everyone who completed the task. These are viewers who also shared their examples. I encourage you to go to the comments and read all the examples so you can learn from one another.

Inverted conditionals invert the subject and verb, so it reminds us of question word order. Inverted conditionals drop the word “if” and we’re left with the conditional that’s understood. It’s implied. It also sounds rather formal. Marat, Ray, and Ra’ed correctly rewrote conditionals with “if” as inverted conditionals.

Let’s look at their answers. Remember that inverted conditionals are more common in formal English. Contractions are more typical of informal English, right? So, don’t try to mix contractions and inverted conditionals, okay? Use full verb forms instead. There are other ways we can express a condition without the word “if” and without a full clause. In other words, we can use implied conditionals.

I’m going to share some words and phrases that you can use in speaking or in writing. They’re a bit more typical of formal English, but that doesn’t mean you won’t hear them in everyday situations. You know, formal doesn’t have to be serious and boring so let’s have a bit of fun. I searched online for strange products, and I found quite a lot. Would you like to hear about a few?

Do you like bananas? Do enjoy sliced bananas? If so, you can buy a banana slicer for anywhere between five and ten US dollars. Really! I was surprised to learn that people actually spend money on such a gadget. Can’t they use a simple kitchen knife to slice up the banana?

If not, could they just enjoy a whole banana? If so and if not or implied conditionals we use them to avoid repetition. When the answers can only be yes or no, We use if so and if not to list the two possible outcomes concisely. Do you enjoy sliced bananas? If so… if not… Can’t they just use a simple kitchen knife to slice up the banana? If not… I’m sure any parents listening agree with me on Safety and the need to teach small children what to eat and what not to eat.

I discovered some odd lickable products out there, for example, lickable wallpaper and lickable bubbles. Children, in my opinion, shouldn’t be licking the walls or eating bubbles in the air. Otherwise, they’ll come to assume that these are safe and normal behaviors. “Otherwise” is an adverb. It implies a result of the opposite condition. So if the kids don’t lick the walls, that’s good in my opinion. If they lick the walls, that’s rather strange and possibly unsafe.

Note how I express that idea in fewer words by using “otherwise.” Children, in my opinion, shouldn’t be licking the walls or eating bubbles in the air. Otherwise, they’ll come to assume that these are normal and safe behaviors. I believe in the value of oral hygiene, and I bet you do as well.

But I didn’t realize that people spend money on a tongue brush. I find that rather odd. Don’t we have another invention for that purpose? We’ve had the modern toothbrush since the 1930s, and I read that the Chinese invented a bristle toothbrush back in the 15th century. Although it’s called a toothbrush, I believe it’s perfectly fine to use a toothbrush to clean your tongue.

I was taught to brush my teeth and then use the same toothbrush to clean my tongue. If necessary, you can add more toothpaste to the brush and then take care of your tongue. Then it will be clean and minty. “ If necessary” is another implied conditional and it’s very convenient, especially in writing. The full clause is “if it is necessary” or “if it becomes necessary.” If necessary, you can add more toothpaste to the brush.

So if it is necessary. A similar expression is “if need be.” Here’s an example. Some people enjoy variety in their lives. They like trying different clothing styles, different hair colors, and different foods. If need be, they’ll even seek variety in their personal care products. Did you know there are flavors of toothpaste like pine, bacon, and pickle? You may be able to find such flavors online or in a store.

If possible, would you try a flavor other than mint? So “if need be” has the same meaning as “if necessary” or “if one has to.” If need be, they’ll even seek variety in their personal care products. As I was talking about toothpaste, I used another implied conditional: “If possible.” The full clause is “if it is possible” or “if it were possible.” If possible, would you try a flavor Other than mint?

If there are any teachers out there, please check the video description. I have a link to my ELT blog. I created a handout so you can practice all these implied conditionals. And you’ll be able to bring the fun and humor of strange toothpaste flavors into your classroom. For the rest of you, here’s your homework task.

I’d like you to choose at least one of the implied conditionals and create an example. I’ll share some of your ideas in our next lesson on conditionals. Here’s a bonus task to challenge you. Does the phrase “if anything” make a statement stronger or weaker? In other words, if I use “if anything,” does it emphasize or soften my idea?

Here’s an example. Coffee toothpaste doesn’t seem like a good idea. If anything, it defeats one of the purposes of brushing your teeth: to freshen your breath. We’ll talk about “if anything” and other conversational expressions with “if” in our next lesson on conditionals. That’s all for now.