First Conditional
First Conditional
You use the first conditional to talk about a likely situation and to describe its result. You talk about the
likely situation with if + present simple. You describe the result with will or won’t.
If you speak the language, the locals will be more hospitable.
If you don’t use public transport, pollution will become an enormous problem.
If you don’t use less water, there won’t be enough for the locals.
Activities
1. Use public transport. If everyone uses their cars, pollution and traffic congestion will become
an enormous problem.
2. Stay in small hotels and eat local food. It’s important that the money you spend on
accommodation and food remains within the local area.
3. Travel out of season. It’s the best time to avoid crowds, and it’s often cheaper as well.
4. Think of yourself as a guest, not as a tourist. As a tourist, you’re simply a source of money.
5. Learn the local language. If you make an effort to speak their language, you’ll be able to talk to
local people, and they are likely to be even more hospitable.
6. Be careful about taking photos. In some places, people are embarrassed when you take their
photo. Find out what the local custom is.
7. Find out about the place you’re visiting. It’s very impolite to the local people if you’re only
there because of the weather and don’t want to know anything about where you are.
8. Use less water than at home. In certain places, the authorities supply the big hotels with
water.
9. Use local guides. This will create jobs and help the local economy.
10. Adopt the local lifestyle. If you don’t appreciate being in a foreign country, why leave home in
the first place?
Adapted from The Good Tourist by Katie Wood and Syd House
5. Underline all the first conditional sentences in the text.
6. Look at the words in the box and check you know what they mean.