[Grammar] Conditionals past + future

[tom3m]

How should I connect (using if) sentences like these:
If 1, 2.
1) She didn't see the film yesterday.
2)She will not be able to tell us about it tomorrow.
The only conditional clauses we have learnt about are zero, first, second, third and mixed between the second and the the third.
My opinion would be : If she didn't see the film yesterday, she would not be able to tell us about it tomorrow.

Thank you in advance

 

[5jj]

My opinion would be : If she didn't see the film yesterday, she would not be able to tell us about it tomorrow.

Although many course books insist on presenting conditionals in these three types, there are actually many conditionals that do not easily slot into these patterns.

Your suggestion is possible, if we take 'if' to suggest 'given that'.

You could also say, "If she had seen the film yesterday, she would have been able to tell us about it tomorrow".

 

[tom3m]

Although many course books insist on presenting conditionals in these three types, there are actually many conditionals that do not easily slot into these patterns.

Your suggestion is possible, if we take 'if' to suggest 'given that'.

You could also say, "If she had seen the film yesterday, she would have been able to tell us about it tomorrow".

Thank you
Are there any materials where I can read something about this because as you wrote in textbooks there are only four types of them.

 

[~Mav~]

Are there any materials where I can read something about this...

Sure! ;-) I hope 5jj doesn't mind if I recommend his excellent paper on conditionals. :up:

 

[5jj]

I hope 5jj doesn't mind if I recommend his excellent paper on conditionals. :up:

Not at all. Thank you.

 

[tom3m]

I'm now going through 5jj's paper of conditionals and there's a sentence :
...if John will bring his car, we’ll go out to a pub in the country. I have been taught that after IF in time and conditional clauses, there mustn't be will. Then I realised that will as a verb have a different meaning, so I hope that will doesn't take place as a modal verb,does it?

 

[5jj]

I'm now going through 5jj's paper [STRIKE]of[/STRIKE] on conditionals and there's a sentence :
"...if John will bring his car, we’ll go out to a pub in the country". I have been taught that after IF in time and conditional clauses, there mustn't be will. Then I realised that will as a full/lexical verb [STRIKE]have[/STRIKE] has a different meaning, so I hope that will doesn't [STRIKE]take place[/STRIKE] function as a modal verb,does it?"

In that example, will is still a modal, but it conveys the meaning of "is willing to" and is natural and correct. The 'rule' about not using will is far too simplistic. It would be better expressed as "We do not normally use will to express simple futurity in conditional and time clauses".

This is explained in some detail in the paper.

 

[~Mav~]

*** NOT A TEACHER ***

I have been taught that after IF in time and conditional clauses, there mustn't be will.

You will have read 5jj's instructive explanations, but here is a remarkable example from one of the Star Wars movies: "If you will not be turned, you will be destroyed." (Palpatine rules, and so does Ian McDiarmid. ) Not only is "if you will not be..." correct, but, in this very case, "if you are not..." is incorrect. That's what I have learnt.;-)