Should you need…, Had I known…: inverted conditionals
Formal conditionals without if: should, were and had at the start
What you'll be able to do
Write formal emails, notices and reports, and understand the style of official and business English.
The patterns
Drop if and put the auxiliary first:
| With if | Inverted (formal) |
|---|---|
| If you need any help, … | Should you need any help, … |
| If I were in your position, … | Were I in your position, … |
| If we were to cancel, … | Were we to cancel, … |
| If I had known, … | Had I known, … |
| If it weren't for her help, … | Were it not for her help, … |
- Should you have any questions, please contact us.formal, a possible future
- Had we left earlier, we would have caught the train.an unreal past
- Were the price to rise, demand would fall.a hypothetical
- Had it not been for the doctors, he wouldn't have survived.an unreal past
Negatives: Had it not been, Were it not, never Hadn't it been in this pattern.
Common mistakes
Would you need help, please call.→ Should you need help, please call.Hadn't I known, …→ Had I not known, …Had I knew, …→ Had I known, …
Practice
- _____ you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.Options: Should · Would · Did
Show the answer
Should — Should you have…: formal, a possible future.
- _____ I known about the delay, I would have taken a later train.Options: Had · Should · Would
Show the answer
Had — Had I known: an unreal past.
- _____ for her quick thinking, the situation would have been much worse.Options: Had it not been · Had it been not · Should it not be
Show the answer
Had it not been — Unreal past with not: Had it not been for…
- _____ the company to close the factory, hundreds of jobs would be lost.Options: Were · Had · Should
Show the answer
Were — Were + subject + to-infinitive: a hypothetical.
- _____ I in your position, I would accept the offer.
Show the answer
Were — Were I in your position…: formal advice.
In the app, this lesson is taught one idea at a time with the examples read aloud, then practised with questions you answer by choosing or typing. It comes back for review on later days, until you can use it without help.
More on this topic: English conditionals: first, second, third and mixed · Emphasis in English: inversion and cleft sentences