IELTS grammar: Conditionals

Conditionals do heavy lifting in IELTS specifically because Task 2 essays are built around cause-and-effect argument and Speaking Part 3 rewards speculation about hypothetical scenarios, and both tasks are essentially impossible to answer well without conditional structures. The recurring error pattern in scripts at Band 5-6 is not choosing the wrong conditional type in isolation — most candidates can produce a correct first or second conditional sentence on its own — but mixing two different conditional forms within a single sentence, pairing a present-simple if-clause with a "would" result clause, or a past-simple if-clause with a "will" result clause, which produces a sentence native speakers immediately register as broken even when the meaning is still recoverable.

Zero conditional states a general truth or a cause-and-effect relationship that is reliably, mechanically true, not a specific prediction about the future: "If demand exceeds supply, prices rise." Both clauses use present simple, and "will" never appears, because this is a rule describing how things generally work, not a forecast about one particular future event. This form suits Task 2 sentences establishing a general economic, social, or scientific principle before applying it to a specific argument: "If a currency loses value quickly, imported goods become more expensive" states background logic the rest of the paragraph can then build on.

First conditional describes a realistic, plausible future possibility with a real chance of happening: "If governments invest more in public transport, congestion will likely decrease." The if-clause uses present simple (never "will," despite referring to the future — this is a specific and commonly broken rule on its own), and the result clause uses "will" or a modal like "could" or "may." INCORRECT: "If the government will invest more in public transport, congestion will decrease." CORRECT: "If the government invests more in public transport, congestion will decrease." This is the workhorse conditional for realistic Task 2 policy predictions, because most Task 2 prompts ask you to argue about plausible, not purely hypothetical, outcomes.

Second conditional describes a hypothetical, unlikely, or counterfactual present or future situation — something you are discussing as an idea rather than something you expect to actually happen: "If the government banned private cars from city centres, pollution would fall significantly." The if-clause uses past simple (grammatical form only, not past meaning — the sentence is still about the present or future) and the result clause uses "would." A commonly confused sub-rule is the verb "be" inside a second-conditional if-clause, which formally takes "were" for all subjects, including "I" and "he/she/it," in careful written English: "If I were in charge of this policy" is the more formal, traditionally correct form, though "If I was" has become common enough in speech that it is rarely marked as a serious error there — written Task 2, however, rewards "were."