LingoflySi tengo, si tuviera, si hubiera tenido: three kinds of 'if'
English keeps one 'if' and marks the rest with 'would'. Spanish has three conditions and changes the verb in both halves of the sentence. For example: “Si tengo tiempo, paso por tu casa” — If I have time, I'll drop by your place. A rule from the Spanish course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
English keeps one 'if' and marks the rest with 'would'. Spanish has three conditions and changes the verb in both halves of the sentence.
The real one. Si tengo tiempo, voy. After si comes the ordinary present, and the other half takes present or future. The trap: never a future after si. Si tendré is impossible, and so is si tenga.
The imagined one. Si tuviera tiempo, iría — if I had time, I would go. After si comes the -ra form (tuviera, fuera, pudiera), and the other half takes the condicional.
The missed one. Si lo hubiera sabido, no habría venido. This is the past that cannot be redone, and it is how regret is spoken: hubiera plus participle, then habría plus participle.
Table
| which condition | after si | the second half | example |
|---|---|---|---|
| real | present | present or future | si tengo tiempo, voy |
| imaginary | imperfecto de subjuntivo | condicional | si tuviera, iría |
| the missed chance | hubiera + participle | habría + participle | si hubiera sabido, habría ido |
| never | future after si | — | impossible: 'si tendré' |
| never | present subjuntivo after si | — | impossible: 'si tenga' |
| as if | como si + imperfecto subj. | — | como si fuera fácil |
| provided that | siempre que + subjuntivo | — | siempre que avises |
| if I were you | yo que tú | condicional | yo que tú no iría |
By example
- If I had known earlier, I wouldn't have bought the ticket
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Si tengo, si tuviera, si hubiera tenido: how does it work in Spanish?
English keeps one 'if' and marks the rest with 'would'. Spanish has three conditions and changes the verb in both halves of the sentence.
What does it look like in a Spanish example sentence?
“Si tengo tiempo, paso por tu casa” — If I have time, I'll drop by your place. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.