USES OF THE ZERO CONDITIONAL
To talk about scientific facts.
- If you heat water, it boils.
- You get purple if you mix red and blue paint.
To talk about general or personal truths.
- If I don’t get a good night’s sleep, I can’t concentrate very well the next day.
- I feel a bit stressed out if I don’t play the guitar when I get home from work.
To talk about rules and laws.
- If you don’t buy a train ticket and get caught, you get a fine.
- If we film videos in the wrong part of the building, they tell us to move.
STRUCTURE
Example: If I sleep badly, I am grumpy in the morning.
Condition (if-clause): present simple
Result (main clause): present simple
You can change the order of the sentence and the meaning stays the same:
If I sleep badly, I am grumpy in the morning.
or
I am grumpy in the morning if I sleep badly.