what are the differences in meaning between these two sentences?
a If I had the money I'd buy a new car.
b If I have the money I'll buy a new car.
2007-01-20 01:36:22 · 17 answers · asked by Anonymous in Education & Reference ➔ Words & Wordplay
In sentence (A) the speaker is wishing to have money in order to buy a care but in reality he doesn't have money and so he can't buy a care he is dreaming in, so it's an impossible condition.
However in sentence (B) the speaker is planning to the future saying that he will buy a car once he gets the money, so it's a possible condition.
2007-01-20 01:59:42 · answer #1 · answered by bero575 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They are both conditionals.
The first (a) is the third conditional which is used to talk about unreal situations in the past and to imagine things that did not happen.
The second (b) is the first conditional which is used to talk about possible future events which depend on other future events.
The first is dreaming, a wish, whereas the second could take place depending on whether the money is available in the future.
a If I had the money I'd buy a new car. However i don't have the money and won't have so this will not happen.
b If I have the money I'll buy a new car. There is a distinct possibility that the money will be available and if so the new car will be bought.
2007-01-20 09:46:10 · answer #2 · answered by drakshug 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Sentence (a) is what is known as the second conditional and is used to express an unlikely, but not impossible, situation.
Sentence (b) is the first conditional and is used to express a likely, future situation.
There is also a construction known as the third conditional:
If I'd had the money I'd have bought a new car.
This is used to express an impossible situation in the past. It's impossible because the past has gone: I did not have the money and therefore I didn't buy a new car.
Some people put an extra 've (If I'd've had the money ...), but this is clumsy and unnecessary.
2007-01-21 12:53:10 · answer #3 · answered by deedsallan 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sentence A is in the subjunctive tense and sentence B is in the conditional tense. The subjunctive is used to express doubt and possibility, and the conditional is used to express future actions that are contingent on another action. So, in sentence A you are just dreaming about buying a new car (all talk and no action) and in sentence B you are talking about what you will do in the future if you get the opportunity.
The subjunctive isn't used a lot in modern English, it is mostly used in Romance languages (French, Spanish...)
2007-01-20 10:12:32 · answer #4 · answered by hotgirl2_22 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A means If I had the money I WOULD buy a new car.
B means If I have the money I will buy a new car.
2007-01-20 10:06:11 · answer #5 · answered by Emma C 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Id say If i had the money I'd buy a new car
I didn't think if I have the money i'll buy a new car was a proper sentence because 'If I' is relating to the future but 'have' is the present tense.
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2007-01-20 09:56:44 · answer #6 · answered by Tony 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
sentence a says what you would do now if you had the money, (suggesting that you don't have the money now). For instance if your car had just broken down you would say if i had the money (now) i'd buy a new car (now).
sentence b has more possiblity (you may have the money to buy a new car in the future).
2007-01-20 09:43:53 · answer #7 · answered by lola 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In case B, IF only means WHEN, it is not a real conditional sentence. But in case A, it is clear that you don't have the money, it is a hypothesis, a condition for the second part of the sentence.
2007-01-20 11:20:02 · answer #8 · answered by zsofi_a_sello 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In a), the subject is covertly stating that he/she does not have the funds to buy a new car, but would in the event of an upturn in fortunes.
In b), the subject is more optimistic in that he/she foresees a time when the purchase of a new car may be possible.
2007-01-20 17:48:38 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
If I had the money(NOW) I would buy a new car.
If I have the money(TOMORROW) I will buy a new car.
The second one suggests there is a possibility that the money will be available.
The first is much more hypothetical..(if I were a rich man)
2007-01-20 12:44:13 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋