OrkaOrka/البكالوريا/العلوم الرياضية ب
اللغة الإنجليزية · Bac SMB · المعامل 2

Conditional Sentences — English Bac SMB

In the Bac SMB stream, where English is coefficient 2, the Language section rewards precise grammar with quick marks. “If she had studied harder, she would have passed the exam”: the four conditional types (zero, first, second, third) express a general truth, a real possibility or a regret.

راجعه Équipe Orka · 30 غشت 2026

ضمن برنامج بكالوريا SMB

English carries a coefficient of 2 in the Bac Sciences Maths B (SMB) stream, level with Philosophy. Mathematics dominates the stream (coefficient 9), followed by Physics-Chemistry and Engineering Sciences (coefficient 7 each), so English can look marginal — but it and Philosophy form the narrow margin where rankings and honours are actually decided. Reading, language and guided writing are all assessed.

في الامتحان

Three parts: Reading Comprehension, Language, and Writing (a guided text of about 180 words). SMB candidates, trained to be rigorous and systematic, do well on the Language section if they treat each grammar point as a rule with a fixed structure; the risk is a dry essay that ignores vocabulary range and register, which the Writing section also scores.

أهداف التعلم

  • Apply this grammar point accurately in the Language section and in the guided writing of the Bac SMB English exam (coefficient 2)
  • Form and distinguish the zero conditional (general truth) and the first conditional (real future possibility)
  • Form the second conditional for a hypothetical or unlikely present situation
  • Form the third conditional for a regret or a hypothesis about a finished past fact
  • Never use will in the clause introduced by if

المفاهيم الأساسية

Zero and first conditional

Zero: if + present simple, present simple — general truth: “If you heat water to 100°C, it boils.” First: if + present simple, will + base form — real future possibility: “If it rains tomorrow, we will stay home.”

Second conditional (unreal present)

if + past simple, would + base form — a hypothetical or unlikely present / future situation: “If I were rich, I would travel the world.” Were replaces was for all subjects in careful style.

Third conditional (unreal past)

if + past perfect, would have + past participle — a hypothetical situation about a past fact, impossible to change: “If she had studied harder, she would have passed the exam.”

الأخطاء الشائعة

1

Putting will in the if-clause: “If it will rain” is wrong — use “If it rains”.

2

Confusing the second and third types: the second is about the present / future (if + past simple), the third about a finished past fact (if + past perfect).

3

Forgetting have in would have + past participle in the third type: “would passed” is wrong — use “would have passed”.

مثال محلول

نص السؤال

Put the verbs in brackets into the right form (third conditional): “If he (study) harder, he (pass) the exam.”

التصحيح

Identify the type. The context suggests a regret about a past fact that has already happened (the exam is over): this is the third type.
if-clause structure. if + past perfect: “If he had studied harder”.
Main clause structure. would have + past participle: “he would have passed the exam”.
Result. “If he had studied harder, he would have passed the exam.”

افهم الدرس، ثم تدرب.

ينشئ Orka تمارين غير محدودة وامتحانات تجريبية مصححة تغطي برنامج اللغة الإنجليزية في بكالوريا SMB، مع تتبع تقدمك درساً بعد درس.

تابع مجاناً مع Orka

3 تمارين للتدرب

التمرين 1

Easy
Complete (type 1): “If you (not/hurry), you (miss) the bus.”
عرض التصحيح
“If you don't hurry, you will miss the bus.” — real future possibility: present simple in the if-clause + will in the main clause.

التمرين 2

Medium
Complete (type 2): “If I (be) you, I (accept) the job offer.”
عرض التصحيح
“If I were you, I would accept the job offer.” — hypothetical present situation: were (not was, careful style) + would + base form.

التمرين 3

Hard
Correct: “If she would have known the truth, she wouldn't have trusted him.”
عرض التصحيح
Never put would in the if-clause: “If she had known the truth, she wouldn't have trusted him.”

تعمق أكثر في هذا الدرس

الأسئلة الشائعة

How do I recognise which conditional type to use?

Ask first whether the situation is real / likely (first), purely hypothetical in the present (second) or a regret about a past fact that has already happened (third). The tense in the if-clause (present, past simple, past perfect) follows directly from that choice.

Can I mix the second and third conditionals?

Yes, in a “mixed conditional” (outside the strict programme but sometimes accepted): if + past perfect, would + base form, for a past regret with present consequences. The Bac focuses on the four classic types.

was or were after if I in the second conditional?

Both exist in speech, but were (“If I were you”) is the form expected in Bac writing, treated as more carefully correct for all subjects.

A maths-stream student often dislikes English — how do they raise the mark?

Treat it as structure. Every writing task = introduction + argument + counter-argument + conclusion; every grammar point = one rule + one correct example + one typical mistake. Memorise that framework, apply it to the 31 chapters with two example sentences each, and 12/20 is reachable without eating into the heavy maths programme.

Is this grammar point actually tested on the Bac SMB English paper?

Yes — in the Language section as gap-fill, sentence-joining or error-correction, and indirectly in Writing, where the same structures decide whether a sentence is marked as accurate. One rule, two examples and one typical mistake per point is enough to cover both.