Breakdown of Si tuviera más tiempo, editaría todos mis apuntes como si fueran un libro de ejercicios.
Questions & Answers about Si tuviera más tiempo, editaría todos mis apuntes como si fueran un libro de ejercicios.
Because this is an unreal / hypothetical condition in the present or future.
- In Spanish, for unreal situations like “If I had more time, I would…”, the standard pattern is:
si + imperfect subjunctive + conditional
So:
- Si tuviera más tiempo, editaría…
= If I had more time, I would edit… (but I don’t have it)
Using si tengo would mean a real, possible condition:
- Si tengo tiempo, editaré / edito mis apuntes.
= If I have time, I’ll edit / I edit my notes. (real possibility)
Si tendría is almost always considered incorrect in standard Spanish in this type of sentence. Native speakers normally avoid si + conditional in this structure.
Both tuviera and fueran are in the imperfect subjunctive (also called past subjunctive):
- tuviera: imperfect subjunctive of tener
- fueran: imperfect subjunctive of ser
They are used because:
Si tuviera más tiempo…
The si-clause expresses an unreal or hypothetical condition → imperfect subjunctive.…como si fueran un libro de ejercicios.
Como si almost always triggers the subjunctive because it introduces a comparison with something that is not real (your notes are not actually a workbook).
So the sentence uses the imperfect subjunctive twice, for two different hypothetical ideas.
Yes, you can. Both forms are correct and mean the same thing:
- Si tuviera más tiempo…
- Si tuviese más tiempo…
They are just two variants of the same tense (imperfect subjunctive).
Usage notes:
- In modern Spanish, tuviera is generally more frequent than tuviese, though both are understood everywhere.
- In Spain, you will hear both; tuviera tends to sound a bit more common/neutral in everyday speech, while tuviese may sound slightly more formal or literary to some people, but the difference is subtle.
You can treat them as interchangeable in this kind of sentence.
Because editaría is the conditional tense, used to express what would happen under a condition:
- editaría todos mis apuntes…
= I would edit all my notes… (if I had more time)
The pattern is:
- Si
- imperfect subjunctive → conditional
Si tuviera más tiempo, editaría…
- imperfect subjunctive → conditional
If you used editaré (future):
- Si tengo tiempo, editaré todos mis apuntes.
= If I have time, I will edit all my notes. (real possibility, not unreal)
So:
- editaría → hypothetical result (dependent on an unreal condition)
- editaré → future result (dependent on a realistic condition)
The verb fueran agrees with the subject, not with the noun after it.
In como si fueran un libro de ejercicios:
- Subject: todos mis apuntes (my notes) → plural
- Verb: fueran (3rd person plural, to match apuntes)
- Predicate / complement: un libro de ejercicios (a workbook), which is singular
So the structure is:
- (Ellos) fueran un libro de ejercicios
→ They were a workbook
Even though un libro is singular, the subject is plural (mis apuntes), so the verb must be plural too: fueran, not fuera.
After como si, Spanish almost always requires the subjunctive, because it introduces a comparison with something contrary to reality or purely imaginary.
Correct patterns:
Unreal / hypothetical present or future:
como si- imperfect subjunctive
→ como si fueran un libro de ejercicios
(as if they were a workbook, but they are not)
- imperfect subjunctive
Unreal / hypothetical past:
como si- pluperfect subjunctive
→ como si hubieran sido un libro de ejercicios
(as if they had been a workbook)
- pluperfect subjunctive
Forms like:
- ✗ como si son un libro
- ✗ como si eran un libro
are ungrammatical in standard Spanish in this meaning. You must use the subjunctive: fueran / hubieran sido.
You can say it, but the nuance changes slightly.
…como un libro de ejercicios
= …like a workbook
This is a more direct comparison of manner: you edit them in the same way you would edit a workbook.…como si fueran un libro de ejercicios
= …as if they were a workbook
This emphasizes that the situation is not literally true: your notes are not a workbook, but you treat them as if they were.
In practice, both suggest a similar idea, but:
- como un libro → stylistically simpler, more about how you edit them.
- como si fueran un libro → highlights the pretend / imaginary aspect more clearly.
In Spain, apuntes typically means:
- class notes / lecture notes / written notes from studying
Examples:
- Tomar apuntes en clase = to take notes in class
- Pasarme tus apuntes = to send me your notes
Compared to other words:
- notas in Spain is more often:
- marks/grades (sacar buenas notas = get good grades)
- musical notes (in music) It can mean written notes in some contexts, but apuntes is the standard word for study notes.
So in this sentence, mis apuntes is best understood as my class/study notes.
Spanish often uses the pattern:
- libro de + noun to express the type or content of the book.
So:
- libro de ejercicios = workbook / exercise book
- libro de texto = textbook
- libro de cocina = cookbook
libro para ejercicios would be grammatically possible, but it doesn’t sound like the normal, fixed expression for a workbook. Libro de ejercicios is the standard collocation you’ll hear and read.
You can change the word order, but some versions sound more or less natural.
Most natural:
- Si tuviera más tiempo, editaría todos mis apuntes como si fueran un libro de ejercicios. ✅
Other possible, but less typical, orders:
Si tuviera más tiempo, editaría, como si fueran un libro de ejercicios, todos mis apuntes.
→ Grammatically fine, but sounds more written/literary and a bit heavy.Si tuviera más tiempo, todos mis apuntes los editaría como si fueran un libro de ejercicios.
→ Also correct; adds emphasis to todos mis apuntes.
Spanish word order is relatively flexible, but the original version is the most neutral and natural in everyday use.