CONDITIONAL CLAUSES

A conditional clause is denoted by the word ‘if’ or ‘unless’ in English.

The Latin word for ‘if’ is ‘si’.

Whilst there are many different types of conditionals, depending on tense and mood of the verbs, you only need to know the present and past simple conditionals for GCSE level.

Present Conditional:

The present simple conditional requires present indicative verbs.

E.g. si amicum suum videt, laetus est = If he sees his friend, he is happy.

Past Conditional:

The past simple conditional requires either imperfect or perfect indicative verbs.

E.g. si amicum suum videbat, laetus erat = If he saw his friend, he was happy.

The negative of ‘si’ is ‘nisi’ meaning ‘if not’ or ‘unless’