Conditionals (Types 0, 1 & 2) – English Grammar Exercises For B1
Choose the most appropriate option (A, B, C, or D) to complete each sentence.
1 If bees ______ entirely, our global food supply would collapse within a few years.
(a) disappearing
(b) disappear
(c) disappeared
(d) would disappear
2 We ______ many of our favorite fruits and vegetables if these vital insects went extinct.
(a) wouldn’t have
(b) won’t have
(c) not having
(d) wouldn’t had
3 If I ______ a farmer, I would worry constantly about the declining bee population.
(a) am
(b) were
(c) be
(d) have been
4 What ______ to humanity if all natural pollinators suddenly died off?
(a) happens
(b) will happen
(c) would happened
(d) would happen
5 If humans ______ using harmful chemical pesticides, bee colonies might recover rapidly.
(a) stopped
(b) stop
(c) would stop
(d) to stop
6 The agricultural industry would face a massive crisis unless scientists ______ a way to replace bees.
(a) find
(b) didn’t find
(c) found
(d) finding
7 If bees ______ our crops, millions of people around the world would face severe starvation.
(a) didn’t pollinate
(b) don’t pollinate
(c) wouldn’t pollinate
(d) not pollinated
8 We could save these precious insects if every government ______ immediate action to protect their habitats.
(a) takes
(b) took
(c) taking
(d) would take
9 Even if we ______ microscopic robotic bees, they wouldn’t be as efficient as the natural ones.
(a) build
(b) built
(c) would build
(d) building
10 Supermarket shelves ______ completely empty if we didn’t have bees to support modern agriculture.
(a) will look
(b) look
(c) would looking
(d) would look
11 Supposing all the bees vanished tomorrow, how ______ without them?
(a) will we survive
(b) we would survive
(c) would we survive
(d) did we survive
12 If nature ______ its primary pollinators, entire terrestrial ecosystems would break down.
(a) loses
(b) would lose
(c) to lose
(d) lost
13 I wouldn’t be giving this presentation right now unless I ______ this was a critical issue for our survival.
(a) believed
(b) believe
(c) would believe
(d) believing
14 If you ______ a world without bees with your own eyes, you would be terrified of the future.
(a) see
(b) saw
(c) would see
(d) seeing
15 Humans ______ to produce enough artificial food if the natural ecosystem collapsed.
(a) won’t be able
(b) aren’t able
(c) wouldn’t able
(d) wouldn’t be able
16 If an uncontrollable epidemic ______ the remaining bee hives, our economy would suffer drastically.
(a) wiped out
(b) wipes out
(c) would wipe out
(d) wiping out
17 Would people care more about this environmental crisis if they ______ the exact consequences?
(a) understand
(b) understood
(c) understanding
(d) would understand
18 If the situation ______ so incredibly dangerous, environmentalists wouldn’t be sounding the alarm.
(a) isn’t
(b) weren’t
(c) wasn’t be
(d) not be
19 We could easily plant more wildflowers in our cities if we truly ______ to support local bees.
(a) want
(b) would want
(c) wanted
(d) wanting
20 Unless we ______ their natural habitats, we would eventually lose these crucial insects forever.
(a) didn’t protect
(b) protect
(c) protected
(d) protecting
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (c) disappeared
- Why it is correct (The Key): Type 2 Conditional requires the Past Simple in the if-clause to describe an unreal/hypothetical situation in the present or future.
- Error Analysis: Option (b) “disappear” is a Common Mistake (confusing Type 1 possibility with Type 2 hypothesis). Option (a) “disappearing” is a Structural Error (missing finite verb). Option (d) “would disappear” is a Strong Distractor (putting “would” inside the if-clause).
2 (a) wouldn’t have
- Why it is correct (The Key): The main clause of a Type 2 Conditional uses “would/wouldn’t + base verb” to show the hypothetical result.
- Error Analysis: Option (b) “won’t have” is a Common Mistake (mixing Type 1 result with Type 2 condition). Option (c) “not having” is a Structural Error. Option (d) “wouldn’t had” is a Strong Distractor (after a modal like “wouldn’t”, you must use the base verb “have”, not the past form “had”).
3 (b) were
- Why it is correct (The Key): In formal Type 2 Conditionals, “were” is the standard form of the verb “to be” for all subjects (If I were, If it were).
- Error Analysis: Option (a) “am” is a Common Mistake. Option (c) “be” is a Structural Error. Option (d) “have been” is a Strong Distractor.
4 (d) would happen
- Why it is correct (The Key): Question form for the result clause of a hypothetical condition (“died off”).
- Error Analysis: Option (b) “will happen” is a Common Mistake (Type 1). Option (a) “happens” is a Structural Error (Type 0). Option (c) “would happened” is a Strong Distractor (incorrect verb form after “would”).
5 (a) stopped
- Why it is correct (The Key): Past Simple in the if-clause to match the “might recover” result clause (“might” works like “would” to show hypothetical possibility).
- Error Analysis: Option (b) “stop” is a Common Mistake. Option (d) “to stop” is a Structural Error. Option (c) “would stop” is a Strong Distractor.
6 (c) found
- Why it is correct (The Key): “Unless” means “if not”. The verb must be in the affirmative Past Simple to create the hypothetical condition (if they didn’t find).
- Error Analysis: Option (a) “find” is a Common Mistake. Option (d) “finding” is a Structural Error. Option (b) “didn’t find” is a Strong Distractor (meaning trap: “unless they didn’t find” creates a double negative, ruining the logic).
7 (a) didn’t pollinate
- Why it is correct (The Key): Negative Past Simple in the if-clause.
- Error Analysis: Option (b) “don’t pollinate” is a Common Mistake. Option (d) “not pollinated” is a Structural Error (missing auxiliary “did”). Option (c) “wouldn’t pollinate” is a Strong Distractor (“would” cannot be in the if-clause).
8 (b) took
- Why it is correct (The Key): Past Simple condition to match the hypothetical result “could save”.
- Error Analysis: Option (a) “takes” is a Common Mistake. Option (c) “taking” is a Structural Error. Option (d) “would take” is a Strong Distractor.
9 (b) built
- Why it is correct (The Key): “Even if” follows the same conditional rules. Past Simple is required.
- Error Analysis: Option (a) “build” is a Common Mistake. Option (d) “building” is a Structural Error. Option (c) “would build” is a Strong Distractor.
10 (d) would look
- Why it is correct (The Key): The result clause requires “would + base verb”.
- Error Analysis: Option (a) “will look” is a Common Mistake. Option (c) “would looking” is a Structural Error. Option (b) “look” is a Strong Distractor.
11 (c) would we survive
- Why it is correct (The Key): “Supposing” acts as “If”. Correct question word order is Modal + Subject + Base Verb.
- Error Analysis: Option (a) “will we survive” is a Common Mistake. Option (b) “we would survive” is a Structural Error (statement word order). Option (d) “did we survive” is a Strong Distractor (past tense question instead of a conditional one).
12 (d) lost
- Why it is correct (The Key): Past Simple in the condition clause for a singular subject (“nature”).
- Error Analysis: Option (a) “loses” is a Common Mistake. Option (c) “to lose” is a Structural Error. Option (b) “would lose” is a Strong Distractor.
13 (a) believed
- Why it is correct (The Key): Past simple after “unless” to establish the unreal present condition.
- Error Analysis: Option (b) “believe” is a Common Mistake. Option (d) “believing” is a Structural Error. Option (c) “would believe” is a Strong Distractor.
14 (b) saw
- Why it is correct (The Key): Past simple in the if-clause.
- Error Analysis: Option (a) “see” is a Common Mistake. Option (d) “seeing” is a Structural Error. Option (c) “would see” is a Strong Distractor.
15 (d) wouldn’t be able
- Why it is correct (The Key): Negative hypothetical result clause using “be able to” for ability.
- Error Analysis: Option (a) “won’t be able” is a Common Mistake. Option (b) “aren’t able” is a Structural Error. Option (c) “wouldn’t able” is a Strong Distractor (missing the verb “be”).
16 (a) wiped out
- Why it is correct (The Key): Past simple condition to match the “would suffer” result.
- Error Analysis: Option (b) “wipes out” is a Common Mistake. Option (d) “wiping out” is a Structural Error. Option (c) “would wipe out” is a Strong Distractor.
17 (b) understood
- Why it is correct (The Key): Past simple to show an unreal present condition (they don’t actually understand right now).
- Error Analysis: Option (a) “understand” is a Common Mistake. Option (c) “understanding” is a Structural Error. Option (d) “would understand” is a Strong Distractor.
18 (b) weren’t
- Why it is correct (The Key): Type 2 conditional uses “were/weren’t” for all subjects in the if-clause.
- Error Analysis: Option (a) “isn’t” is a Common Mistake. Option (d) “not be” is a Structural Error. Option (c) “wasn’t be” is a Strong Distractor (double verb error).
19 (c) wanted
- Why it is correct (The Key): Past simple condition matching the “could plant” result.
- Error Analysis: Option (a) “want” is a Common Mistake. Option (d) “wanting” is a Structural Error. Option (b) “would want” is a Strong Distractor.
20 (c) protected
- Why it is correct (The Key): Affirmative Past Simple after “unless” to match the Type 2 result “would lose”.
- Error Analysis: Option (b) “protect” is a Common Mistake. Option (d) “protecting” is a Structural Error. Option (a) “didn’t protect” is a Strong Distractor (Meaning trap: “Unless we didn’t protect” means “If we did protect”, which makes no sense with the result “we would lose them”).
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- The Function of Type 2: We use Type 2 Conditionals (If + Past Simple, Subject + Would + Verb) to talk about imaginary, highly unlikely, or completely impossible situations in the present or future. It is the perfect grammatical tool for emphasizing risks (“What would happen if the worst came true?”).
- “Would” is NEVER in the If-Clause: The biggest trap for B1 learners is putting “would” next to “if” (e.g., If bees would disappear). “Would” belongs exclusively in the main/result clause.
- The “Were” Rule: In hypothetical situations, it is grammatically correct to use were instead of was for all subjects (e.g., If the situation were dangerous, If I were a farmer).
- Unless = If Not: When you use unless, do not use a negative verb next to it, otherwise you create a confusing double negative. Just like in math, two negatives make a positive! (Say Unless we protected NOT Unless we didn’t protect).
- Could and Might: You don’t always have to use “would” in the result clause. You can use could (to show hypothetical ability/possibility) or might (to show a hypothetical chance).