Cambridge Grammar of English Hardback with cd-rom a comprehensive Guide

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539 Glossary for any unfamiliar terms

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If she had prepared better for the interview, then she would have got the job.

As long as it’s okay with you, then I’ll stay till Monday.

Unless you’ve got certain qualifications, then you can’t get a contract.

CONDITIONAL CLAUSES AND FORMALITY

458

Conditions can be expressed at different levels of formality. More formal structures

sometimes involve inversion and the omission of conjunctions such as if:

[extract from a letter concerning an application to join a Health and Fitness

Club]

Were you to apply before the 15th of September, you would still be given a

preferential discount.

Inversion instead of using if is normally only possible in the case of the verb forms

had

, should and subjunctive were (i.e. were used for all persons, singular and

plural:

Had they not been so uncooperative, I might have forgiven them and not 

complained.

Should you wish to visit the factory and to inspect the plant, the best time for

our management team would be in the early evening.

Were it not for help from a psychologist, she might have been a lot more unwell

by now.

(Was it not for help from a psychologist, she might have been …)

After if, the subjunctive forms were and be are sometimes used in second

conditional sentences in very formal contexts (

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159e

). Were is used in

hypothetical conditionals, be tends to be used more in real conditionals:

If there were any reason to doubt his word, we would ask him to resign.

I am delighted to see you again, even 

if it be under such tragic circumstances.

In most informal contexts, indicative forms of be are preferred, except for the

semi-fixed expression if I were you:

If she was to sell her place now, she’d probably make a big profit. 

(preferred to: If she were to sell …)

If I were you, I’d book a taxi the night before.

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Cambridge Grammar of English

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