ENGLISH CONDITIONAL MOODS AND ITS RENDERING INTO RUSSIAN

ABSTRACT

The work will describe the conditional moods and their rendering from English to the Russian language. Conditional moods have four types, so for this reason, there might be difficulties in some situations. There will be shown the analysis and grammatical form of conditional sentences in English and Russian languages. Fortunately, English Conditional moods are most often similar in structure to their Russian translation, which makes the task much easier.

Keywords: Conditional moods, translation, English language, Russian language, grammar.

English conditionals convey different possibilities based on actions or events. Whether we are currently doing, will do, or did something, conditional moods indicate what will happen, might happen, would have happened, or might have happened [7]. Conditional sentences often employ the simple present tense, especially in subordinate clauses introduced by words like "if" or "unless," or in temporal clauses introduced by phrases such as "as soon as," "before," or "when"[4].  Positive conditions typically use "if," while negative conditions employ "unless"[5]. According to grammatical rules, a comma separates the if-clause and the conditional or main clause in conditional sentences [6]. However, when the if-clause follows the main clause, no comma is used [1]. There are four types of conditional sentences, categorized as real or unreal. A 'real' condition leaves the question of whether the condition is fulfilled or not. On the other hand, an 'unreal' condition, it’s obvious that the condition will not be completed. [5]. In the if-clause, the Present Simple tense is used, along with a modal or modal phrase. Modal phrases include "should," "can," "could," "may," "might," "will," "be going to," and "have to." The result clause expresses true future conditions using the base form of the verb or the imperative, representing actual possibilities [2].

Russian conditionals include two types of conditional sentences. In both cases, the clause stating the consequence can be introduced by "то" or "тогда" (equivalent to "then" in English), as long as it follows the clause containing the condition. The conditional mood in Russian is formed using the particle "бы," which is added to the past tense of any number, gender, or aspect. Occasionally, "бы" can be replaced with "б". There are two main types of Russian conditionals: Real conditional sentences and Hypothetical conditional sentences [3]. In Real Conditional sentences, a verb in the past, present, or future tense is employed in each phrase. The speaker uses this structure to express that, given specific conditions, a particular consequence either did happen, is happening, will happen, or did not happen, is not happening, will not happen [3].

Here are some examples of English conditionals and their rendering into Russian:

1. If you think he's happy, then you're mistaken. (Если ты думаешь, что он счастлив, то это ошибка)
2. If you stop crying, we'll go to the park. (Если ты перестанешь плакать, мы пойдем в парк)
3. If work hadn’t begun on time (but it did), then the cost would have been much higher. (Если бы работы начались не вовремя, тогда расходы были бы гораздо выше)
4. How would you react if your ten-year-old child didn’t know something like that? (Как бы вы отнеслись к тому, если ваш десятилетний ребёнок не знал бы что-то на подобие этого?)

In Hypothetical Conditional sentences, both clauses must have a verb in the conditional mood. The speaker uses this structure to convey that under specific hypothetical conditions, some consequence would/would not follow or would have/would not have followed. The appropriate form of the past tense (feminine, masculine, plural, or neuter) is combined with the invariable particle "бы" in Russian [3].

This research demonstrates that the structure between English and Russian conditional moods exhibits similarities. Consequently, we can logically categorize the four types of English conditional sentences into Real and Hypothetical Russian conditional moods. This categorization allows for an easier translation of the four types of English conditional moods into Russian as real and hypothetical conditional moods.

References:

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