The Real Conditional
The real/possible conditional is used to express things which are possible (usually causes and effects).
- If it rains, I won’t go to the market.
- If the students work hard, they’ll pass the exam.
- If the grant gets accepted, we’ll build a new shint bet.
In Amharic, this sentence structure generally follows this formula:
real conditional = kä/ከ+simple past+future tense
kä/ከ+simple past (condition) | future tense (effect/result) | full sentence |
ከአጠኑ käat’änu if they study | ያለፋሉ yaläfalu they will pass | ተማሪዎች ከአጠኑ፣ያለፋሉ። tämariwoč käat’änu, yaläfalu. If the students study, they will pass. |
ወንድሜ ከመጣ wändme kämät’a if my brother comes | ቡና እንጠጣለን buna ïnt’ät’alän we will drink coffee | ወንድሜ ከመጣ፣ ቡና እንጠጣለን። wändme kämät’a, buna ïnt’ät’alän. If my brother comes, we will drink coffee. |
The Unreal Conditional
The unreal conditional is used to describe things that don’t actually exist, but might hypothetically exist in an alternate universe.
- If I were president, I’d pass a law that makes chocolate free!
- If you had studied harder, you might have passed that exam.
- If I had done Peace Corps in another country, I wouldn’t be studying Amharic.
In Amharic, this sentence structure generally follows this formula:
ብ/b + verb root (+ noro/ኖሮ, optional*) + verb in “would have” form
(the “would have” form is actually the same as the “used to” form)
- If you had studied, you would have passed.
ብትጠኚ ኖሮ፣ አልፋሽ ነበር። - If the disease had been treated, it wouldn’t have become serious.
በሽታውን ብትቆጣጠር ኖሮ፣ አይጠናብህም ነበር። - If Kenya hadn’t declared independence, their president would still be British.
ኬንያ ባትገነጠል፣ እስካሁን ፕረሲደንታቸው ኢንግሌዘዊ ይሆን ነበር። - If I were a boy, I would not wear skirts.
እኔ ወንድ ብሆን፣ ቀሚስ አልለብስም ነበር።