The 0 (zero) conditional is the easiest to understand! It is also called the real or factual conditional because it is used to talk about facts, or something that is always true.

The result [I get sick] is always true of the condition [if I eat too much]. It is a fact! There is a fixed connection between the two events.

The zero conditional form:

This conditional is easy because you don’t have to remember which clause goes where or which verb tense is used, you just have to remember:

Example sentences:

Ice melts if you heat it.

If I drink, I never drive.

It’s bad luck if the groom sees the bride before the wedding!

If the banana is yellow, it is ripe and ready to eat!

If you’re happy, I’m happy!

I ask for directions if I get lost.

I don’t let a cold stop me! I still go to work if I get sick.

If I don’t sleep well, I am really cranky in the morning.

*You can also use modals in the result clause:

I can’t drive if I don’t have my glasses.

If you want to go to university, you must study hard.

If you want to lose weight, you should eat less and exercise more.

You can’t drive a car if you don’t have a license.

*You can also use the imperative in the result clause

If you drink, don’t drive.

Please don’t disturb me if I am asleep!

If you’re hungry, eat something!

*When can be used instead of if:

When I cook fish, the house always smells.

I always smoke when I drink.

When I go to the movies, I eat a bag of popcorn.

When it rains, it pours! [English proverb]

When I’m sad, I go shopping.

I listen to my ipod when I jog.

*Unless can also be used instead of if not:

I can’t drive unless I have my glasses.
[I can’t drive if I don’t have my glasses.]

You can’t drive a car unless you have a license.
[You can’t drive a car if you don’t have a license.]

*You can also think of the zero conditional this way:

In the if clause, you can use the present continuous tense:

If I am driving, I never answer my cell phone.

When I’m reading, my cat sits on my lap.

I listen to my ipod when I’m jogging.

Please don’t disturb me if I am sleeping!

If you have trouble with conditional sentences, please read Conditional Sentences: An Introduction

What is a conditional sentence?

A conditional sentence is a sentence structure commonly used in English when we want to talk about something (a result) that may happen ONLY IF something else happens first (a condition). The condition may be something real or unreal / hypothetical, and the result could a definite result, or just a possible / likely result.

The most common type of conditional sentence uses if. These are the easiest conditional sentences to form and understand. You could also use unless, when, after, before or as soon as. Here, we will focus on using conditional sentences with if.

There are 2 parts to a conditional sentence. These two parts are also called clauses. [A clause is any part of a sentence with a subject and a verb.]

Part 1 – the if or condition clause: the event that needs to occur; also called the dependent clause because it is not a complete sentence and is dependent on the 2nd part of the sentence.

Part 2 – the result or main clause, or what happens when the event in the if/condition clause occurs; also called the independent clause.

Either part can come first:

Changing the order of the clauses does not change the meaning; the two sentences above mean exactly the same thing.

There are 4 types of conditional sentences in English:

0 (zero) conditional – real / factual conditional

1st (first) conditional – future possible/real conditional

2nd (second) conditional – present unreal/hypothetical conditional

3rd (third) conditional – past unreal conditional

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In the listening lesson “Sex and the City 2!” I talked about buying snacks at the movie theatre.

I think that paying $6.26 for a SMALL bag of popcorn is highway robbery!
(highway robbery = when someone charges you a price that is ridiculously high!)

• Parking a car downtown Toronto costs an arm and a leg!

• Wow! That house looks expensive. It must have cost a small fortune.

• Oooh, is that a new Prada bag? That must have cost you a pretty penny!

• I really like the new restaurant that opened up down the street. It’s a bit pricey but the food is worth it!

• We found the perfect location for our wedding reception, but we had to pay through the nose for it!

• I would love to go to Switzerland on vacation, but a trip right now would definitely break the bank!

• Going to the movies is expensive, but it won’t break the bank!

(to break the bank = to cost all the money you have in the bank; more commonly used in the negative form to not break the bank when you want to say that something is expensive, but not that expensive.)

• The New York Yankees pay top dollar for the best baseball players.

(to pay top dollar = to pay a lot of money for something.)

The listening lesson “Sex and the City 2!” is about going to the movies. This is a good opportunity to look at vocabulary used to talk about movies!

In North America (Canada and the US), the word cinema is rarely used. Instead, we talk about going to the movies (where movies = the movie theatre):

Do you want to go to the movies tonight?
~ I don’t know. What’s playing?

In this context, What’s playing? = What movies are being shown [at the movie theatre]?’
[Note that in the above picture, it says now playing above the poster for ‘Sex and the City 2’. Now playing = Now showing.]

Instead of cinema, you may also hear the word cineplex or mutliplex – a cinema with multiple theatres; Cineplex Odeon is also the name of a major chain of movie theatres in North America. The phrase movie theatre can refer to the entire cineplex or a single auditorium showing one movie.

In the listening practice video, I talked about how I got the times wrong:

There was no 6:15 show! … There was only a 6:15 show on the weekend, not on Monday! The next show wasn’t until at 7:00pm …

When I use the word show, I’m talking about the different times the same movie [Sex and the City 2] is shown at the movie theatre.

The first ‘Sex and the City’ movie was a blockbuster – a movie that was hugely popular and successful. It was a box-office hit – a movie that made a lot of money. In my opinion, the second ‘Sex and the City’ was a real dud – a movie that wasn’t very good and didn’t make a lot of money.

The box office is the place in the movie theatre where the tickets are sold. In the past, it really looked like a box! A cashier is the person who takes your money when you buy a ticket. Nowadays, you can buy your movie ticket online or at a stand-alone ticket vending machine at the theatre. Today, the box office also means how many tickets were sold and how much money a film made:

How did James Cameron’s new movie do at the box office?

Critics panned the film but it did well at the box office.

In North American movie theatres, it is very common to buy snacks to eat during a movie – including hot dogs, pizza, nachos with cheese, ice cream, licorice … you name it! The most common thing to eat when you watch a movie is popcorn with butter! You can buy snacks and drinks at the concession stand (also called the snack counter).

In many countries around the world, English movies are dubbed into the local language. To dub a film means to replace the English voice with voices speaking in the local language [French, German, Japanese, etc.]

Related post:
Vocabulary Spotlight on: The Oscars!

No, we don’t use the present perfect for the future! Take a look at this sentence, though:

Yes, the sentence is correct. It sounds strange, doesn’t it?

I have seen the movie ‘Sex and the City 2.’ [I thought it was terrible!] After I saw the movie, I talked to a friend on Twitter. My friend wants to see that movie. She hasn’t seen it yet. She will see the movie in the future. I want her to tell me her opinion after she has seen the movie.

She thought it was odd that I used the present perfect in my sentence structure, so I will attempt to explain why the sentence is correct!

This sentence structure is a variation of the 1st conditional [future real conditional]:

My friend is definitely going to see the movie, so we can change the ‘if’ to ‘when’ or ‘after’:

Instead of asking her a question, I used the imperative:

When you use the conjunction ‘after’ in this sentence structure, you can use the present simple OR the present perfect with NO difference in meaning:

This is an English lesson designed to help you practice and improve your English listening and pronunciation skills. The listening lesson is a short story about something that happened in my life in Canada. There is also a short pronunciation explanation about a word or sound I used in the story.

Story: What happened when I went to see Sex and the City 2!
Pronunciation lesson: 7 French words in English!

If you have trouble with your listening skills, here’s something that may help:
How to practice listening

Listen to the podcast:
*Try to listen at least once without looking at the words!

Download the podcast in .mp3 from Podbean.com or itunes!

Watch the video:

Listening Comprehension

1. What day did I go to the movie?

2. Why did I have an hour to kill at the theatre?

3. How much does a small bag of popcorn cost?

4. What did I think of the movie?

Transcript

(*Click on the links to learn more about the grammar, vocabulary and expressions used in the story!)

I admit it – I shed a few tears during the first Sex and the City movie! Who wouldn’t? It’s every woman’s worst nightmare that her fiancé will stand her up at the altar. I love the Sex and the City TV show because I love New York City and I love all the clothes the girls wear.

So, I was really excited to see Sex and the City 2! Before we left my house last Monday, we quickly checked the newspaper to see what time the movie was playing. We decided to go to the 6:15 movie. We drove to the theatre and got in line to buy our tickets. We got there early to make sure we had time to get some treats before the movie. When we got to the cashier, I said “Two tickets for Sex & the City 2 at 6:15 please.”

There was no 6:15 show! When we checked the times in the paper, we were looking at the weekend paper – not the Monday paper. There was only a 6:15 show on the weekend, not on Monday! The next show wasn’t until at 7:00pm, so we had an hour to kill.

No problem! This theatre was so huge we could eat dinner there. We went to the concession stand, bought some slices of pizza and some drinks and sat down to read the free magazines.

Going to the movies in Canada is not cheap! Tickets are cheaper during the week, so the admission was $12 (including taxes) on Monday. That’s OK, but then they charge you even more money for food and drinks! Whenever I go to the movies, I love to eat popcorn with butter. Do you know how much a small bag of popcorn costs? Six dollars and twenty-six cents! For a small bag! That’s highway robbery! I should have made the popcorn at home and brought it with me.

Not many people go to the movies on a Monday, so we practically had the auditorium to ourselves! We had the best seats in the house right in the middle, with the best view of the screen. I think there were only 10 other people in the auditorium.

As for the movie, I thought it was terrible! The language they used and the jokes were so crude. At times it seemed like a bunch of frat boys wrote the script. It was not what I expected from Sex and the City! There was really no story, and there were so many product placements that the movie seemed like one big infomercial. I don’t think there will be a Sex and the City 3!

Discussion Questions:

Have you seen ‘Sex and the City 2’? What did you think of it?

Is it expensive to go to the movies in your country?

Let me know in the comments below!

Pronunciation: 7 French words used in English

In English, we use a lot of French words. The words are the same, but sometimes the pronunciation is different. Here are 7 French words that we use in English:

fiancé
chic
genre
encore
matinée
potpourri
protégé

Vocabulary:

to stand [someone] up
It’s every woman’s worst nightmare that her fiancé will stand her up at the altar.
= when someone intentionally does not show up to a meeting or appointment– in this case, a wedding!

the altar
It’s every woman’s worst nightmare that her fiancé will stand her up at the altar.
= most North American weddings take place in a church; at the front of the church there is usually a platform or table.
If you ‘stand someone up at the altar’, you don’t show up to your own wedding!

to have time to kill
The next show wasn’t until at 7:00pm, so we had an hour to kill!
= to have nothing to do for a period of time

a concession stand
We went to the concession stand, bought some slices of pizza & some drinks …
= a place in a sports stadium, movie theatre or any public place where food and drinks are sold

the house
We had the best seats in the house!
= in any type of theatre, the ‘house’ is the people watching the show and the area where they are sitting.

frat boys
At times it seemed like a bunch of frat boys wrote the script.
= A fraternity is a male social organization common at American universities [the female equivalent is a ‘sorority’]
= frat boys are sometimes known for childish behaviour

crude
The language they used & the jokes were so crude.
= rude, offensive & makes people uncomfortable, particularly when talking about sex.

infomercial
…there were so many product placements that the movie seemed like one big infomercial
= a TV show / movie that is actually a very long commercial!

Did you know that the Sex and the City TV show was based on a book? Author Candace Bushnell wrote a column for the New York Observer newspaper based on her own experience living in New York City. She later wrote a book:

Earlier this year (2010), Candace Bushnell wrote The Carrie Diaries about Carrie’s life before Sex and the City!

I’ve noticed there are certain words that English learners often have difficulty pronouncing.

In my first pronunciation lesson, I showed you 7 Commonly Mispronounced English Words.

In this lesson, I explain the correct pronunciation of 5 more commonly mispronounced words AND I also show you some other words with similar sounds.

Enjoy!

More Pronunciation Videos:
The Alphabet
Numbers I – How to Say English Numbers 0-99
Numbers II – How to Say English Numbers 100 – 1 trillion
Numbers III – Time, Sports Scores, Money, Years, Population
7 Commonly Mispronounced English Words
11 English Words with Silent Letters
Words That Look the Same but Are Pronounced Differently

The listening lesson “Thor to the Rescue” is about a very smart dog in my neighbourhood. Many language learners are familiar with the expression “It’s raining cats and dogs”, but there are many more expressions in English with ‘dog’ in them.

Here are 13 more phrases and expressions with ‘dog’:

The doggy paddle
This is the first movement all children learn when they learn to swim! Have you ever seen a dog trying to swim in water? It moves its legs back and forth very quickly. When humans do the same movement in the water, it’s called ‘the doggy paddle’!

A dog and pony show
When you do something just to impress someone, such as your boss or someone important, it’s called ‘a dog and pony show.’

What is the point of this meeting? This is nothing but a dog and pony show.

The top dog
= The boss, leader or anyone in a position of authority.

Congratulations on your promotion! Now you’re the top dog around here!

The dog days of summer
It gets very hot in the months of July and August in North America. It is the height of summer. This time period is called ‘the dog days of summer.’

We go up north to our cottage in the dog days of summer. It’s much cooler up there.

dog-eared [adjective]
If a book or magazine ‘dog-eared,’ it is well-used and many pages have turned down corners. Often when people want to mark a spot in a book, they turn down the corner of the page.

She gave me her dog-eared copy of Little Women to read.

To fight like cats and dogs
= To fight all the time, sometimes viciously.

We used to fight like cats and dogs when we were young!

To be in the dog house [with someone]
If you are in the dog house with someone, you are in a lot of trouble with them!

Jim won’t be playing golf with us this weekend. He’s in the dog house with his wife because he forgot her birthday.

To work like a dog
= To work very hard.

I need a rest. I’ve been working like a dog all week.

You can’t teach an old dog new tricks!
= It’s difficult to change old habits or behaviour, or learn new things

My mother isn’t very good with computers. You can’t teach an old dog new tricks!

Let sleeping dogs lie!
= Don’t talk about something bad that happened in the past, especially if it’s going to cause an argument.

Why are we talking about something that happened 10 years ago? Just let sleeping dogs lie!

It’s a dog-eat-dog world
= It’s a ruthless, vicious, competitive world – especially in business. Some people will do whatever it takes to get ahead or be successful, even if it hurts people around them.

We used to be friends, but he said terrible things about me so he would be promoted and not me. It’s a dog-eat-dog world out there!

Every dog has its day.
= Everyone will achieve success or happiness at some point in their life. This is usually said to someone to motivate and encourage them if they feel like they won’t be successful.

One day, all your hard work will pay off. Every dog his its day!

Gone to the dogs
= Something is not as good as it used to be.

We don’t go to that restaurant anymore. It used to be great but it has really gone to the dogs.

Do you have any phrases or expressions in your language with ‘dog’ in them?

In the listening lesson “Thor to the Rescue!”, I talked about a dog I encountered before I went for a walk around my neighbourhood. I had never seen this dog before and I didn’t know anything about him or his situation. I said:

He could be far from home and he could have been wandering for days without food or water.

I have no knowledge of this dog, so I am guessing things about him.

The modal verb could is used to guess things about someone or something when we know nothing about them:

Don’t make fun of Maria for putting on weight! She could be pregnant, not fat!

Does she know anything about her new boyfriend? He could be dangerous! He could be married! He could have 10 kids!

Don’t open the door! There could be a serial killer at the door!

I’m nervous about sharing a room with someone I don’t know anything about. She could talk in her sleep. She could snore. She could have strange friends!

We can also use could + perfect tense to speculate about something that happened earlier, even though we have no knowledge:

[Thor the dog] could have been wandering for days without food or water.

I don’t know why Kevin is so angry. He could have been fired from his job, he could have been robbed, he could have lost his dog …

*Using could for guessing something is different than using may or might. When you use may or might to talk about possibility, you have some knowledge and use that knowledge to say what is or isn’t possible. Could can be used when you have NO knowledge!

*Could not is NOT used for guessing.