explain if this mixed conditional is used correctly "what would you have done if you inherited a large amount of money?''

Question

someone said it wasn't correct because the condition is in the present and therefore cannot have any effect on the past. is that true? I think the condition is hypothetical, so it doesn't have any bearing in the past.

Answer 1

This does depend on context! English can be a funny language because does not have a separate conditional tense, per se, like our romance language friends (French, Spanish, Italian, etc.)

So, the sentence you have COULD be correct if we are only speaking in hypothetical scenarios. Let's say I am chatting with a friend about the many paths our lives take. My friend discusses how much they loved theater, but felt compelled to pick a practical career.

Friend: "I followed the safe path."

Me: "Well, what would you have done if you inherited a large amount of money?"

Friend: "I would have definitely stayed on the stage!"

Very few would take issue with that. However, the most strict grammarians would say "well, the hypothetical is ALL in the past, so a small correction to make that clear would be "What would you have done if you had inherited a large amount of money."

"Correct" here would depend then on context. Are we having a more casual conversation or writing about one? The first option is fine. TOEFL exam? add in that had.

Hope that helps!

Answer 2

It depends on whether you meant to ask about the present or the past. The sentence seems to be a hypothetical question about the past. If so, it needs a small correction. It should be, "What would you have done if you had inherited a large amount of money?" It asks what you would have done (in the past) if you had inherited money (in the past).

For example, if I had inherited money 10 years ago, I would have bought a house.

If I inherited money today (present), I would travel (because now I don't want a house).

If you want to ask about the present, you would say, "What would you do if you inherited a large amount of money?" We use the past tense (inherited) to pose the conditional question about the present. So, this means, what would you do now or in the future if this happened.

I hope that helps.