The past unreal conditional is used to describe imaginary situations in the past where the circumstances could have been different. It is formed using the past perfect (had + past participle) in the if-clause and would + have + past participle in the main clause. Examples are provided such as "If I had gone out less, I would have studied more" and "If Claudia hadn't saved money last year, she wouldn't have bought a new airplane this year." Special forms are also shown for modal verbs like "could have", "should have", and "might have."

1. PAST UNREAL
CONDITIONAL
PAST PERFECT + WOULD/COULD HAVE

2. WHY DO WE USE IT FOR?
The Past Unreal Conditional is used to talk about
imaginary situations in the past. You can describe what
you would have done differently or how something
could have happened differently if circumstances had
been different.

3. EXAMPLES…
 If I had gone out less, I would have studied more.
 (I went out a lot and I didn’t studied much)
 I would have travelled more if I had had more time.
 (I didn´t travel much ‘cause I didn’t have enough money)

4. Let’s put this example:
 Claudia saved money last year so she bought a new airplane this year.
Now, we are going to imagine how things would have been different:
If Claudia hadn´t saved money last year, she wouldn’t have bought a new airplane
this year.
Unreal
situation
Unreal result
Past perfect Would +
have

5.  Edwin didn´t pay attention so he didn’t understand the lesson
If Edwin had paid attention, he would have understood the lesson.
Unreal
situation
Unreal result
Past perfect Would +
have

6. More examples
 If I had studied French at school, I would have got the job.
 Danny would have gotten the promotion if he hadn't insulted the boss's wife.
 I would have read more as a child if I hadn't watched so much TV.
 Mary would have gotten the job and moved to Japan if she had studied Japanese in
school instead of French.
 If Jack had worked harder, he would have earned more money.

7. Modal verbs
 Conditionals with Modal Verbs
There are some special conditional forms for modal verbs in English:
 would have + can = could have
 would have + should = should have
 would have + may = might have
Examples:
 If I had gone to Egypt, I could have learned Arabic.
 If she had had time, she might have gone to the party.

8. Questions
 A: What would you have done if you had won the lottery last week?
B: I would have bought a house.
 A: What city would you have chosen if you had decided to move to the United
States?
B: I would have chosen Seattle.