A conditional sentence has two parts: the protasis, the clause that states the condition (if he comes), and the apodosis, the clause that states the result (I shall be glad). Latin classifies conditions by their time and by their degree of reality, and the mood and tense of the two verbs follow from the type. This page sets out the six main types, the mixed conditions, the conjunctions sī, nisi, sīn, sī nōn, nisi forte, quodsī, the way conditions are reported in indirect speech, and the relation of the conditional to the proviso and to the concessive clause. The overview of the clause types is on the page Subordinate clauses.
| Conjunction | Meaning | Example (constructed) | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| sī | if | Sī vēnit, gaudeō. | If he has come, I am glad. |
| nisi, nī | if not, unless, except if | Nisi vēneris, tristis erō. | Unless you come, I shall be sad. |
| sī nōn | if not (the negative goes with one word or sets up a contrast) | Sī nōn omnēs, at multī vēnērunt. | If not all, at least many came. |
| sīn | but if | Sī vēnit, gaudeō; sīn nōn vēnit, tristis sum. | If he has come, I am glad; but if he has not, I am sad. |
| nisi forte | unless perhaps | Nisi forte errō, hoc vērum est. | Unless I am perhaps mistaken, this is true. |
| quodsī | and if, but if (connecting) | Quodsī hoc vērum est, errāvimus. | But if this is true, we have erred. |
| sī minus | if not (the verb is omitted) | Veniet, sī minus, mittet. | He will come; if not, he will send. |
| Type | Protasis | Apodosis | Example (constructed) | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Simple, present | sī + present indicative | present indicative | Sī hoc dīcis, errās. | If you say this, you are wrong. |
| 2. Simple, past | sī + perfect indicative | perfect indicative | Sī hoc dīxistī, errāvistī. | If you said this, you were wrong. |
| 3. Future more vivid | sī + future or future perfect indicative | future indicative | Sī hoc dīxeris, errābis. | If you say this, you will be wrong. |
| 4. Future less vivid | sī + present subjunctive | present subjunctive | Sī hoc dīcās, errēs. | If you were to say this, you would be wrong. |
| 5. Contrary to fact, present | sī + imperfect subjunctive | imperfect subjunctive | Sī adesset, gaudērem. | If he were here, I should be glad. |
| 6. Contrary to fact, past | sī + pluperfect subjunctive | pluperfect subjunctive | Sī adfuisset, gāvīsus essem. | If he had been here, I should have been glad. |
A simple condition states a fact without saying whether the condition is true. Both verbs are in the indicative, in any tense, and the tense is the same as in English.
Sī qua recordantī benefacta priōra voluptās est hominī ...
If a man has any pleasure in recalling his former good deeds ... (Catullus 76.1–2; qua is the indefinite pronoun after sī)
The future more vivid (sī vēneris, gaudēbō) treats the future condition as a real possibility, and uses the future or the future perfect where English has the present (see Tense, mood and voice in main clauses). The present indicative is also found in a vivid future condition:
Sī pereō, hominum manibus periisse iuvābit.
If I perish, it will be a pleasure to have perished at the hands of men. (Vergil, Aeneid 3.606; the present indicative pereō for the future)
The future less vivid (sī dīcās, errēs) treats the condition as a remote or imagined possibility, and has the present subjunctive in both clauses. The apodosis may have the future indicative in poetry:
Sī frāctus illābātur orbis, impavidum ferient ruīnae.
If the world should break and fall upon him, the ruins will strike him unafraid. (Horace, Odes 3.3.7–8; a present subjunctive protasis with a future indicative apodosis)
A condition contrary to fact (or unreal) says that something is not the case, or was not the case. The imperfect subjunctive refers to the present and the pluperfect subjunctive to the past:
| Time | Subjunctive | Example (constructed) |
|---|---|---|
| present | imperfect | Sī doctus esset, id nōn dīceret. If he were learned, he would not say this. |
| past | pluperfect | Sī doctus fuisset, id nōn dīxisset. If he had been learned, he would not have said this. |
The tenses of an unreal condition are not changed by the sequence of tenses: the same forms follow any main verb.
Sī quis mihi parvulus aulā lūderet Aenēās ... nōn equidem omnīnō capta ac dēserta vidērer.
If only some little Aeneas were playing in my hall ... I should not seem so utterly captured and deserted. (Vergil, Aeneid 4.328–330, Dido speaking; both verbs are imperfect subjunctive)
Sī tacuissēs, philosophus mānsissēs.
If you had kept silent, you would have remained a philosopher. (Boethius, Consolation of Philosophy 2.7; both verbs are pluperfect subjunctive)
The indicative in the apodosis. Verbs of obligation, possibility and fitness (dēbeō, possum, oportet, and expressions such as longum erat, melius erat) stand in the indicative in the apodosis of an unreal condition, in the tense of the action that did not happen: Poteram īre, sī vellem. I could have gone, if I had wished. (constructed)
A condition may combine the two time references of an unreal condition:
| Pattern | Example (constructed) | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| pluperfect protasis, imperfect apodosis (past cause, present result) | Sī Caesar victus esset, nunc līberī essēmus. | If Caesar had been defeated, we should now be free. |
| imperfect protasis, pluperfect apodosis (a standing condition, a past result) | Sī doctus essem, id nōn dīxissem. | If I were learned, I should not have said this. |
Sī Pergama dextrā dēfendī possent, etiam hāc dēfēnsa fuissent.
If Troy could have been defended by a right hand, it would have been defended by this one too. (Vergil, Aeneid 2.291–292; an imperfect subjunctive protasis and a pluperfect subjunctive apodosis)
A general (or iterative) condition describes what happens whenever a condition is met. The indicative is used in both clauses:
| Time | Protasis | Apodosis | Example (constructed) | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| present | present or perfect indicative | present indicative | Sī quis vēnit, accipitur. | If anyone comes, he is received. |
| past | pluperfect indicative | imperfect indicative | Sī quis vēnerat, accipiēbātur. | If anyone came, he was received. |
When a conditional sentence is reported, the apodosis becomes an infinitive and the protasis a subjunctive:
| Direct | Reported (constructed) |
|---|---|
| Sī hoc facit, errat. | Dīcit, sī hoc faciat, eum errāre. / Dīxit, sī hoc faceret, eum errāre. |
| Sī hoc fēcerit, errābit. | Dīcit, sī hoc fēcerit, eum errātūrum esse. / Dīxit, sī hoc fēcisset, eum errātūrum esse. |
| Sī adesset, gaudērem. | Dīxit, sī adesset, sē gāvīsūrum fuisse. |
| Sī adfuisset, gāvīsus essem. | Dīxit, sī adfuisset, sē gāvīsūrum fuisse. |
Conditional relative clauses. A relative clause can contain a condition. It follows the rules of the types: Quī hoc facit, errat. Whoever does this is wrong (equivalent to sī quis hoc facit). (constructed)
Proviso. dum, modo and dummodo (provided that) take the subjunctive, with nē as the negative: Dummodo nē tardē veniās, tē exspectābō. I shall wait for you, provided that you do not come late. (constructed)
Ōderint dum metuant.
Let them hate, provided that they fear. (Accius, quoted by Suetonius, Caligula 30)
A concession (although) grants a fact, and a concessive-conditional (even if) grants a supposition. The moods follow:
| Conjunction | Mood | Example (constructed) | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| quamquam | indicative (a fact) | Quamquam fessus est, labōrat. | Although he is tired, he works. |
| quamvīs, licet | subjunctive | Quamvīs sit dīves, miser est. | However rich he may be, he is wretched. |
| etsī, etiamsī | as for sī: indicative or subjunctive | Etsī labōrat, gaudet. Etiamsī labōret, gaudeat. | Even though he works, he is glad. Even if he were to work, he would be glad. |
| cum | subjunctive | Cum sit dīves, miser est. | Although he is rich, he is wretched. |
See also the page Subordinate clauses.
| Type | Protasis | Apodosis |
|---|---|---|
| Simple present | sī + present indicative | present indicative |
| Simple past | sī + perfect indicative | perfect indicative |
| Future more vivid | sī + future or future perfect indicative | future indicative |
| Future less vivid | sī + present subjunctive | present subjunctive |
| Contrary to fact, present | sī + imperfect subjunctive | imperfect subjunctive |
| Contrary to fact, past | sī + pluperfect subjunctive | pluperfect subjunctive |
| General, present | sī + present or perfect indicative | present indicative |
| General, past | sī + pluperfect indicative | imperfect indicative |
Identify the type of condition and translate.
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