What if + past form of the verb?

[Yura Reiri]

Is it really rule for the ' What if ' to be followed by the past form of the verb?

Example:

What if I found him?

Can't it be 'What if I find him' since I'm talking at the present moment?

Thank you.

[Raymott]

Is it really rule for the ' What if ' to be followed by the past form of the verb?

Example:

What if I found him?

Can't it be 'What if I find him' since I'm talking at the present moment?

Thank you.

No, it's not a rule. Yes, you can say, "What if I find him?".

[Yura Reiri]

Oh. Thank you. That question has bugged me for ages because every time I read something containing that 'What if', it's always followed by the past tense when I could've used the present tense since I don't think they meant it to be in the past.

[Tdol]

The fact that they're using the past tense does not necessarily mean they are referring to past time, though it can. If you use the present tense, you think there's a good chance of finding him and the past when you think it's unlikely.

[emsr2d2]

You will hear "What if I go there now?" and "What if I went there now?" and "What if I were to go there now?"

[Raymott]

I see the use of the past tense here as being more conditional than the present tense.

"What if I found him? Would you be grateful?"
"What if I find him? Will you be grateful?"

Of course, this is a parallel structure to, "If I found him, would you be grateful," etc.