CONDITIONALS

• ZERO CONDITIONAL

Form:
If - clause: Present Simple
Main-clause: Present Simple

Use: a general truth or situation

e.g. If you heat water, it boils.

• FIRST CONDITIONAL

Form:
If - clause: Present Simple
Main-clause: will + bare infinitive / can, may, might, should, ought to + verb / imperative

Use: sth possible to happen in the future

e.g. If I tell you the secret, Anna will/may be furious.
If you see John, tell him to call me.

• SECOND CONDITIONAL

Form:
If - clause: Past Simple
Main-clause: would, could, might, should, ought to + bare infinitive

Use: sth what is unlikely to happen in the future or a hypothetical situation

e.g. If I were rich, I would buy a villa in Dubai.

• THIRD CONDITIONAL

Form:
If - clause: Past Perfect (had + p.p.)
Main-clause: would (or modal) + have + p.p.

Use: sth that could have happend differently in the past

e.g. If you had brought a map, we wouldn't have been lost.

• MIXED CONDITIONAL

Form:
If - clause: Third conditional (If + Past perfect)
Main-clause: Second conditional (would + verb)

Use: the result of a past action to the present

e.g. If you had eaten that sandwich, you wouldn't be hungry now.

WISH (IF ONLY)

1. wish for a present situation to change
wish + past simple
e.g. I wish I were younger. (we use "were" instead of "was" for all persons!)

2. wish for a past situation to change
wish + past perfect
e.g. I wish I had studied more.

3. wish for an annoying habit to change
wish + would
e.g. I wish you would stop smoking.

HABITS

• Present habit

be accustomed to doing sth = be used to doing sth / noun
e.g. I am used to getting up early.

get used to doing sth or noun
e.g. Did you get used to getting up early?
I am getting used to working late.
I finally got used to my boss’ complaints.

• Past habit (that no longer exists!)

used to + verb
e.g. We used to go to the beach everyday when we were kids.
We didn’t use to go to the beach everyday when we were kids.
Did we use to go to the beach everyday when we were kids?

TWO MORE WAYS TO EXPRESS PAST HABITS
1. Past Simple
2. Would + verb
e.g. We went / we would go / we used to go to the beach everyday when we were kids.

NOTE: “Would” is not used with stative verbs!
e.g. He used to be a teacher.(not “would”!)

ESSAY

Do you agree or disagree with the following statement?
“Haste makes waste!”

“Haste makes waste” is a common phrase which means that if you try to do something in a hurry, you will probably waste time, money and effort. I couldn’t agree more with what this statement expresses.

In our days, the lifestyle and the way we live pushes us to hurry to get to work, to drive, to walk, to eat or to do everything quickly without thinking about the consequences which will arise later. For example, due to the fact that we do things quickly, a lot of waste has been created which destroys the planet. We don’t think about recycling, but we use the things once and we throw away all of them, afterwards. That wrong mentality is responsible for the increase of the amount of waste in landfills and the gradual death of our planet.

Another example is that when we go out to a restaurant or a bank or to the supermarkets, we demand a fast service, but we don’t realize that the result will be some hasty service of bad quality.

Moreover, in our everyday life another example could be the way we drive. We drive very fast and thoughtlessly. So, this way of driving leads to the accidents and destruction of our cars. In addition, we put our life and the lives of other people at risk due to our carelessness and we lose money in order to fix the damage.

In conclusion, I totally agree with the above statement. You have to schedule what you have to do, to put everything into order and not to hurry without important reason. It is better to be safe than sorry!

ESSAY

More and more people are spending time working abroad these days. They go in search of better pay and work experience. Also many people enjoy experiencing a different culture for a period of time. Weigh the advantages and disadvantages of working abroad and state your personal opinion.

Nowadays, numerous people move abroad due to various reasons. The most important reason is to look for a good job. It goes without saying that there are many benefits of living and working away from the home country. However, working in other countries also involves certain disadvantages.

Firstly, I would like to refer to the positive aspects of working in a foreign country. The first one is that a person who is employed in a foreign country will be able to grab more employment chances than in their home country. So, they will get knowledge and experience which can be useful to build up a career in a better way. Moreover, they will be paid much better than in their own country. So, they will be able to help their family and improve their living conditions. Another benefit of working abroad would be to experience a different culture. Living abroad gives them a chance to see another way of life in a way that they can’t experience when they just travel through a place. Also, getting to know the new country where they are working, seeing a different way of life and experiencing, the way the other people do daily things such as how they behave or the way they talk to each other would help them to improve their knowledge of the country’s language and customs.

On the other hand, as it is said, the beginning of something new is always the most difficult part. So, leaving their hometown also poses difficulties. First of all, when they live and work in a new country, they are unable to speak their native language; therefore, they are forced to learn that country’s language. In addition, the traditions are different from their country, so it’s difficult for them to follow their home country traditions. Furthermore, sometimes working abroad can be dangerous. Occasionally, employers abuse foreigners! This mainly happens because the foreigners don’t know the country’s language very well to communicate efficiently, so that fact makes it easier. Also, there is no one to ensure them that they will find a job which fits their qualifications. Last but not least, they have to take into account the financial circumstances under which they will work there because they will probably have to pay higher taxes or a private insurance for medical attention.

In conclusion, travelling in other countries to work entails both positive and negative aspects. However, it seems to me that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. I could say that all the above difficulties can be overcome and that traveling abroad for work is really worth it!