When learning English, special attention should be paid to the subject "Subjunctive mood". In Russian, we very often find sentences in conditional mood. Moreover, the conditions can be both feasible and completely unrealistic. And they all have a certain structure and method of construction. The fact is that in the Russian language a situation that involves the use of conditional mood can be displayed in only one form. As for English, there are some differences. The fact is that the population of Great Britain sees in such information some differences, in particular, the reality or unreality of the action being performed. Therefore, a variety of subjunctive forms arose.
In English, this topic is small, but the correctness of speech largely depends on its understanding. The most important thing is to properly remember the condition for constructing a proposal.
The subjunctive mood in English expresses the possibility or unreality of the proposed action. There are four types of conditional sentences that differ in composition and application.
The zero type is characterized by the fact that the conditional (subordinate) part begins with If and the verb is used in Present Simple, and the main verb in the main part is expressed in Present Simple. Examples may include:
1. If I come back early, I watch TV or read books (If I come home earlier, I watch TV or read books).
2. If it gets dark, we go home (If it gets dark, we go home).
This type is different in that the subjunctive mood here is quite simple to form, which cannot be said about the other types of sentences.
As for the first type, it is about an upcoming, not an existing, action. Its structure is as follows: the main part contains the main verb used in Future Simple, and the dependent begins with If, and the verb is used in Present Simple. When translating, you should pay attention to the fact that we are talking about the future, and not about the present tense. Examples could be:
1. If he comes home early, he'll go for a walk with friends. If he comes home earlier, he will go for a walk with friends.
2. We'll do our tasks, if he gives us the example. We will do our tasks if he gives us an example.
The subjunctive mood of the second type is different in that the action here is completely unrealistic, but we are talking about it in the present tense. The structure of the construction of such sentences is as follows: in the dependent part, If is used with a verb in Past Simple, and in the main, the form would be the first form of the verb, i.e. Present Simple: If I were God, I would help all people to find love and piece. If I were God, I would help all people find love and peace. Note that in this type in the singular it is customary to use not the was form, but were.
The subjunctive mood of the third type is considered the most difficult to understand and compose. In statements, the same unrealistic situation is displayed as in the previous type. Only the narrative is conducted not in the present, but in the past tense. The structure of the sentence is as follows: If + Past Perfect, would have + P3 (third form of the verb). Examples are the following sentences:
1. It would have been wonderful, if I had got you telephone number two days ago. It would be great if I had your number two days ago. Accordingly, the event is classified as unrealistic, because the situation cannot already be changed: there was no number when it was needed.
2. If he had seen you last year, I would have not made so many mistakes. If I saw you last year, I would not have made so many mistakes.
Based on the above examples, it can be noted that the subjunctive mood in English has some features of use, without knowing which you can make many mistakes in the construction and use of a particular expression. Note that conditional sentences are quite common in speech, we come across them daily. To study the rules of their construction is not difficult, because each type corresponds to a certain structure and time. First of all, you should determine the degree of reality of the situation, because in English this feature plays a very important role in choosing the form of the verb.