The Third Conditional (Impossible Past)
The third conditional describes impossible conditions in the past and their hypothetical results. In English, this is the "If I had known, I would have gone" structure.
Portuguese expresses this with a combination of two compound tenses. Both use the auxiliary verb ter followed by the past participle:
- The Condition: Se (If) + Pluperfect Subjunctive (tivesse, tivesses, tivesse, tivéssemos, tivessem)
- The Result: Conditional Perfect (teria, terias, teria, teríamos, teriam)
| If the road had not been so slippery, the crash would not have happened. | Se a estrada não tivesse estado tão escorregadia, o despiste não teria acontecido. |
| If the snowstorm had started earlier, the crash would have been inevitable. | Se o nevão tivesse começado mais cedo, o despiste teria sido inevitável. |
Changing the clause order
As in English, you can flip the sentence structure so the result clause comes first. The word se then connects the two halves in the middle of the sentence.
| We would have prevented the tragedy if we had looked at the signage. | Teríamos prevenido a tragédia se tivéssemos olhado para a sinalização. |
| What tragedy would have happened if they had crashed? | Que tragédia teria acontecido se eles se tivessem despistado? |
Negatives and Reflexive Pronouns
In negative clauses, não goes before the auxiliary verb (tivesse or teria). Reflexive pronouns also precede the auxiliary verb when triggered by words like se or não.
| If the driver had not crashed, the paramedics would have had less work. | Se o motorista não se tivesse despistado, os socorristas teriam tido menos trabalho. |
| If there had not been so much recklessness, our little car would not have crashed. | Se não tivesse havido tanta imprudência, o nosso carrinho não se teria despistado. |
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