Formation:

• If clause: Present Simple
• Main clause: Future (will) or Modal (can/may/might/should)
• Pattern: If + Present Simple, ... will + base verb

Examples:

• "If you order now, we will ship tomorrow."
• "If she works hard, she can get a promotion."
• "If the price drops, we might buy more."

Usage:

• Real, possible situations in present/future
• Likely conditions
• Business predictions and plans

Unless = If Not:

• "Unless you hurry, you'll be late." (= If you don't hurry...)
• "We won't proceed unless you approve."

Time Reference: Present or future possibilities

Business Context:

• Negotiations: "If we agree on price, we'll sign."
• Project planning: "If we finish on time, we'll celebrate."
• Decision making: "If sales increase, we'll expand."

Formation:

• If clause: Past Simple
• Main clause: would/could + base verb
• Pattern: If + Past Simple, ... would + base verb

Examples:

• "If I were rich, I would buy that company."
• "If she knew the answer, she would tell us."
• "If we had more time, we could improve it."

Special Rule - WERE for All Subjects:

• "If I was" → "If I were"
• "If he was" → "If he were"
• "If she was" → "If she were"
• "If they was" → "If they were"

Usage:

• Hypothetical or unlikely present/future situations
• Imaginary scenarios
• Advice using "If I were you..."

Comparison: Real vs. Unreal:

Zero Conditional (General Truth):

• If + Present Simple, Present Simple
• "If you heat water, it boils."
• Scientific facts, general truths

First Conditional (Real):

• If + Present Simple, will + base verb
• "If it rains, I'll stay home."
• Likely future situations

Second Conditional (Unreal):

• If + Past Simple, would + base verb
• "If I were you, I would accept."
• Hypothetical present/future

Third Conditional (Past Unreal):

• If + Past Perfect, would have + past participle
• "If I had known, I would have helped."
• Regret about past

Mixed Conditionals:

• Past cause, present result: "If I had studied (Past Perfect), I would be fluent now (Conditional)."
• Present condition, past result: "If I were more careful (Past Simple), I wouldn't have made that mistake (Perfect Conditional)."

Inverted Conditionals (Formal):

• Were I rich... (= If I were rich...)
• Had I known... (= If I had known...)
• Should you need... (= If you need...)

Alternative Conditional Words:

• Unless = If not: "Unless it rains, we'll go."
• As long as = Only if: "As long as you work hard, you'll succeed."
• Even if: "Even if it rains, we'll go."
• Provided that = If: "Provided that you pay, we'll deliver."
• On condition that: "On condition that you sign..."

Formation: be + past participle

Tense Chart (Passive):

With Agent (By):

• "The report was written by John."
• Use "by" to show who/what did the action

Without Agent (No By):

• "The report was written yesterday."
• Omit agent when:
  • Unknown who did it
  • Obvious who did it
  • Unimportant who did it

When to Use Passive:

1. Focus on receiver, not doer: "The package was delivered."
2. Unknown actor: "My wallet was stolen."
3. Obvious actor: "The office was cleaned." (by cleaners)
4. Scientific/technical writing: "The solution was heated."
5. Business reports (impersonal tone): "Decisions were made."

Two-Object Verbs:

• give, show, send, offer, lend, tell, pay, promise, teach, write

Active: Subject + Verb + Indirect Object + Direct Object

• "She gave him the report."
• "They sent us the invoice."

Passive Pattern 1 (Indirect Object becomes subject):

• "He was given the report." (Preferred)
• "We were sent the invoice."

Passive Pattern 2 (Direct Object becomes subject):

• "The report was given to him."
• "The invoice was sent to us."

Preference:

• Pattern 1 (Indirect Object as Subject) is more common
• Sounds more natural in most contexts

Business Examples:

• Active: "The company offered her a promotion."
• Passive 1: "She was offered a promotion." ✓
• Passive 2: "A promotion was offered to her."

Get-Passive (Informal):

• "She got offered a promotion."
• "We got sent the wrong order."

All Tenses in Passive:

• Present: am/is/are + past participle
• Past: was/were + past participle
• Perfect: have/has/had + been + past participle
• Progressive: am/is/are/was/were + being + past participle
• Modals: modal + be + past participle

Modals in Passive:

• "It can be done."
• "It should be finished."
• "It must be approved."
• "It will be completed."
• "It might be delayed."

Passive with Gerunds:

• "I enjoy being praised."
• "She dislikes being criticized."
• "They avoid being sued."

Passive with Infinitives:

• "It needs to be done."
• "She wants to be promoted."
• "They expect to be paid."

Get-Passive:

• More informal than be-passive
• "He got fired." (vs. "He was fired.")
• "She got promoted." (vs. "She was promoted.")
• "We got stuck in traffic." (vs. "We were stuck...")

Verbs Often Used with Get-Passive:

• get married, get divorced, get stuck, get lost, get hurt, get arrested, get accepted, get rejected, get fired, get hired, get paid

Stative Passive:

• "The door is locked." (State, not action)
• "I am interested in..."
• "She is satisfied with..."
• "They are worried about..."

Have Something Done (Causative):

• "I had my car repaired." (= Someone else repaired it)
• "She had her hair cut."
• "We had the office painted."

Business Applications:

• Report writing: "The data was analyzed..."
• Minutes: "It was decided that..."
• Policies: "All employees must be trained..."
• News: "The merger was announced..."