1. Si clauses
—Si on compte l’ancienne population et les nouveaux venus, plus de dix mille personnes doivent leur bonheur à Elzéard Bouffier.
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

2. Si clauses
Si (If) clauses express a condition or event upon which another event depends. The si clause is the subordinate clause, and the result clause is the main clause.
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

3. Si clause: present tense Main clause: present tense
Si clauses
If the result clause is the timeless, automatic effect of a general cause or condition introduced by si, use the present tense in both clauses.
Si clause: present tense
Main clause: present tense
Si je suis malade, If I am ill,
je reste chez moi. I stay at home.
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

4. Si clause: present tense
Si clauses
To talk about possible future events, use the present tense in the si clause to say that if something occurs, something else will result. Use the futur proche, futur simple, or imperative in the main clause.
Si clause: present tense
Main clause
Si l’ouragan arrive ce soir, If the hurricane arrives tonight,
S’il continue à pleuvoir, If it keeps raining,
S’il y a des déchets par terre, If there is trash on the ground,
FUTUR PROCHE
FUTUR SIMPLE
IMPERATIVE
on va rester chez nous demain. we’re going to stay home tomorrow.
il y aura des inondations. there will be floods.
jetez-les dans la poubelle.
throw it in the garbage.
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

5. Si clauses
ATTENTION!
If the word following si is il or ils, make the contraction s’il or s’ils.
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

6. Main clause: conditionnel
Si clauses
A si clause can speculate on what would happen if a condition or event were to occur. For such contrary-to-fact statements, use a verb in the imparfait in the si clause and a verb in the conditionnel in the main clause.
Si clause: imparfait
Main clause: conditionnel
Si on donnait à manger aux animaux du zoo, If we fed the zoo animals,
on mettrait leur vie en danger. we would put their lives in danger.
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

7. Si clauses
Si clauses with the imparfait are often used without a main clause to make a suggestion or to express a wish or regret. The main clause may also be omitted in English in these types of expressions.
Suggestion
Si on allait au zoo demain?
What if we went to the zoo tomorrow?
Expression of wish or regret
Si j’étais plus grand, plus beau, plus riche!
If only I were taller, more handsome, richer!
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

8. Si clause: plus-que-parfait Main clause: conditionnel passé
Si clauses
To make a statement about something that occurred in the past and could have happened differently, use the plus-que-parfait in the si clause and the conditionnel passé in the main clause.
Si clause: plus-que-parfait
Main clause: conditionnel passé
Si nous avions fait du camping,
If we had gone camping,
Si vous étiez arrivés dix minutes plus tôt,
If you had arrived ten minutes earlier,
nous aurions économisé de l’argent.
we would have saved money.
vous n’auriez pas manqué les bandesannonces.
you would not have missed the previews.
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

9. Si clauses
ATTENTION!
In expressions of regret, the main clause with a verb in the conditional is sometimes omitted.
Si j’avais su!
If only I had known!
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

10. Si clauses Si vous étiez passés par la pâtisserie,
If you had stopped by the pastry shop,
on aurait eu des éclairs pour le dessert.
we would have had éclairs for dessert.
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

11. Si clauses
ATTENTION!
The order of the subordinate and main clauses can vary in any si construction.
Si on allait au zoo, on pourrait voir les tigres.
If we went to the zoo, we could see the tigers.
Restez à la maison si l’ouragan passe demain.
Stay at home if the hurricane comes tomorrow.
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

12. Si clauses
When si does not mean if, use the tense called for by the meaning of the sentence.
Ils ne savent pas si les singes aiment vraiment les bananes.
They do not know whether monkeys really like bananas.
Mais si, je t’ai dit que ce produit était nuisible à l’environnement.
But I did tell you that product was harmful to the environment.
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

13. Si clauses Summary of si clauses Subordinate clause Main clause
Possible future events
si + present
futur proche
futur simple
imperative
Contrary-to-fact events
si + imparfait
si + plus-que-parfait
conditionnel
conditionnel passé
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.

14. Si clauses
Si les villages étaient moins dispersés, le narrateur ne serait pas obligé de marcher autant.
© and ® 2011 Vista Higher Learning, Inc.