Conditional or not?

Question

I am not very familiar with using conditional..so I was wondering if I wanted to say: "If you decide to continue studying" would it be.. 1. Si deciden continuar estudiando, OR 2. Si decidirían continuar estudiando ????????????

Gracias

Answer 1

If you are confused by the conditional tense, then I suggest that you read some of Ian-Hill's posts on 0, 1st, 2nd & 3rd conditionals.

Here is one of his posts concerning the 1st conditional.

2nd conditional

0 conditional

2nd and 3rd conditionals

There are others discussions of the conditional tense by Ian if you search.

[Ian, why not author a comprehensive Reference Library Article on the Conditional Tense? It could be as simple as linking all of your discussions under one thread.]

To return to your specific question, we would need more context. We need to know if the if clause is real or unreal to decide if you need to use the subjunctive or indicative mood (let alone the proper tense of the verb).

If you decide to continue studying, don't choose a university without considering everything. So is that ..unreal? It's an imperative so...? Thanks so much for the links though!! I will check them out. - lilrokstah, Jun 5, 2011