The Conditional Mood denotes a hypothetical situation, i.e. an unreal action or an action that is very unlikely to take place [9; 11]. It has two tense forms: present and past. The Present Conditional mood is built with the help of the auxiliary verb would for all persons and the infinitive of the notional verb without the particle to. The Past Conditional mood is formed by the auxiliary verb would and the perfect infinitive [5; 9; 11; 19]
THE USE OF THE CONDITIONAL MOOD
The Conditional mood is used [2; 3; 5; 7; 11]:
- In simple sentences with the implied condition [3]:
E.g. I’d love to go there with you. (Я бы с удовольствием пошла туда с тобой) (i.e. if you invite me)
E.g. “Would you like some coffee, Mrs. Ripstone?” /James Herbert Others/ (Не хотите ли кофе, миссис Рипстоун?)
E.g. But for the nasty weather, we would have left much earlier. (Если бы не скверная погода, мы бы уехали гораздо раньше)
- In complex sentences (in the principal clause) with the adverbial clause of condition or concession:
E.g. Would you have cut a deal with him had I not been willing to pay? /John Grisham Runaway Jury/ (Ты заключил бы с ним сделку, если бы я отказался заплатить?)
E.g. Our clients would not have been living in their car had they not been thrown out of their apartment. And they wouldn’t have died had they not been living in their car. /John Grisham The Street Lawyer/ (Наши клиенты не жили бы в машине, если бы их не выгнали из квартиры. И они бы не умерли, если бы не жили в машине)
