Discussion
In the sentence below, a part is printed in bold. Choose the alternative that best replaces it. If no improvement is needed, choose ‘No correction required’.
If he would have studied harder, he would have passed the examination.
Answer: A
Correct answer: had studied
In a third conditional - an unreal condition in the past - the if clause takes the past perfect and the result clause takes would have with the past participle. So: If he had studied harder, he would have passed. The error is placing would in the if clause. The rule of thumb is absolute for examination purposes: would never appears in the if clause, only in the result clause. The three patterns are best held together. If it rains, we will cancel - a real future possibility. If it rained, we would cancel - hypothetical present or unlikely future. If it had rained, we would have cancelled - contrary to what actually happened. Since the examination is already over and he did not pass, only the third fits. Note that if I were, not if I was, is used in the second pattern - the surviving subjunctive.
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