VOA慢速英语2018--以防万一你不使用“如果”
时间:2018-12-08 作者:英语课 分类:2018年VOA慢速英语(三)月
Just in Case You Don't Use 'If'
It is no surprise that many popular love songs use conditionals 2. Conditional 1 sentences show that something is true only when something else is true. So, they help us talk about wishes, hopes and even regrets.
In her song “All the Way,” classic 3 American jazz singer Billie Holiday sings about love. She uses the word “unless” to show a condition.
When somebody loves you
It’s no good unless he loves you all the way
The word unless means “if not.” When Holiday says, “It’s no good unless they love you all the way,” she means a romance 4 is not good if the person does not love you completely.
On a past Everyday Grammar program, we told you about conditionals that use the word if. For example, “If I practice enough, I can speak English.”
But, in today’s program, we will tell you about other words and phrases we use to make conditionals in spoken English.
First, let’s quickly go over how conditionals work:
Conditional sentences have two parts: the conditional clause 5, which shows the condition, and the main clause, which shows the result. For example, “If I practice enough” is a conditional clause and “I can speak English” is the main clause.
Conditional clauses 6 are not complete sentences. They need a main clause to be complete.
There are a few types of conditionals. Some show possible situations, like the sentence about speaking English. Some show improbable situations. And, others show situations that are impossible or very unrealistic. You can learn more about this in our past program.
Unless
Now, let’s continue with unless.
In our Billie Holiday example, “unless they love you all the way” is the conditional clause. It shows the condition. And “It’s no good” is the main clause. It shows the result of the condition.
Some English learners have a habit of putting the words “unless” and “if” together as “unless if” but these words should not be used together.
Otherwise and or
Two more words that express the same idea as unless are otherwise and or. Each word means if not. So, unless, or, otherwise and if not have the same basic meaning.
Keep in mind that or and otherwise also have other meanings. But in conditional statements, they mean “if not.”
In his song “Trouble Loves Me,” British singer Morrissey uses the word otherwise to talk about unreturned love.
Otherwise hold me
Just when it seems like…
The conditional clause is “otherwise hold me” and the main clause is “So, console me.”
Notice that his conditional and main clauses use the imperative 8 form, so the subject “you” is not stated but is understood.
The word otherwise sometimes uses a different sentence structure in conditionals. Here’s an example:
The plane must be delayed. Otherwise, she would have called.
In this example, the clauses are separate sentences. More importantly, even though the clause “otherwise, she would have called” contains the conditional word, it does not state the condition. The condition is “the plane must be late.”
Having the condition appear in a separate sentence or clause is common with otherwise and or.
Listen to an example using or:
Finish your lunch or you can’t play outside.
Here, the condition is “finish your lunch” and the result is “You can’t play outside.” You’ll notice that the result clause – not the conditional clause – contains the conditional word or.
In case
Let’s move on to the phrase in case.
We use in case to talk about things we should do to prepare for other things that may happen.
For example:
I’ll bring an umbrella in case it rains.
In this sentence, I don’t know if it will rain or not. But it’s possible.
Now, listen to same sentence with if.
I’ll bring an umbrella if it rains.
Did you get the difference in meaning? In the if sentence, I’ll wait to see if it rains first. Then, I’ll bring an umbrella.
Another usage 9 for in case is mainly for signs about what to do if danger occurs. The structure of the conditional clause is in case of + noun 10. For example:
In case of emergency, break glass.
As long as
Our last conditional phrase for today is as long as. When we begin a conditional clause with as long as, the statement is a little stronger than using if. As long as essentially 11 means “only if.”
In his song called “As Long as You Love Me,” American pop singer Justin Bieber says that his love can survive any difficulty.
As long as you love me
We could be starving
we could be homeless
we could be broke
As long as you love me
Because this is a song, it doesn’t follow standard sentence structure. Here, the conditional clause is “as long as you love me.” And, the other lines are main clauses.
One important note about conditionals is that you can often switch the placement of main and conditional clauses and get the same meaning.
For example: I’ll bring an umbrella in case it rains means the same as In case it rains, I’ll bring an umbrella.
And, if you learn conditionals, you’ll have a lot more freedom to express yourself in English.
I’m Alice Bryant.
Words in This Story
phrase – n. group of two or more words that express a single idea but do not form a complete sentence
clause – n. a part of a sentence that has its own subject and verb
habit – n. a usual way of behaving
console – v. to try to make (someone) feel less sadness or
imperative – adj. having the form that expresses a command rather than a statement or a question
essential – adj. in a way that is very basic
starving – adj. suffering from lack of food
switch – v. to make a change from one thing to another
- My agreement is conditional on your help.你肯帮助我才同意。
- There are two forms of most-favored-nation treatment:conditional and unconditional.最惠国待遇有两种形式:有条件的和无条件的。
- Conditionals are used to about possible, imaginary or impossible conditions. 条件句用于谈论有可能的、想像的或不可能的状况。 来自互联网
- Macros containing conditionals will automatically update their visual feedback as appropriate during play. 宏中若有条件式存在时,会依照条件式自动更新该宏的技能、物品描述。 来自互联网
- The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。
- The football match was a classic.那场足球比赛堪称典范。
- She wrote a romance about an artist's life in Tokyo.她写了一个关于一位艺术家在东京生活的浪漫故事。
- They tried to rekindle the flames of romance.他们试图重燃爱火。
- The sentence consists of a main clause and a subordinate clause.这句中有一个主句和一个从句。
- What clause do you require in the contract?你要求在合同中订上什么条款?
- Relative pronouns and adverbs introduce attributive clauses. 关系代词和关系副词引导定语从句。
- Please underline the noun clauses in the passage. 请用线画出短文中的名词性从句。
- We tried to console her when her dog died.她的狗死后,我们尽力安慰她。
- The console is just like a typewriter.控制台就像一台打字机。
- He always speaks in an imperative tone of voice.他老是用命令的口吻讲话。
- The events of the past few days make it imperative for her to act.过去这几天发生的事迫使她不得不立即行动。
- I am clear about the usage of this word at last.这个词的用法我算是弄明白了。
- The usage is now firmly established.这种用法现已得到确认。
- Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
- She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。