Zastosowanie „unless”
Unless oznacza to samo co if...not. Podobnie jak w przypadku if, po unless następuje czas teraźniejszy, przeszły prosty lub przeszły Past Perfect (nigdy tryb przypuszczający). Unless stosujemy zamiast if...not w okresach warunkowych wszystkich typów. Kolejność zdań składowych nie ma znaczenia w zdaniach zawierających unless.
I okres warunkowy: unless + czas teraźniejszy
| Z if | Odpowiednik z unless |
|---|---|
| You will be sick if you don't stop eating. | You'll be sick unless you stop eating. |
| I won't pay if you don't provide the goods immediately. | I won't pay unless you provide the goods immediately. |
| If you don't study dilligently, you'll never understand trigonometry. | Unless you study dilligently, you'll never understand trigonometry. |
II okres warunkowy: unless + czas przeszły
| Z if | Odpowiednik z unless |
|---|---|
| If he wasn't very ill, he would be at work. | Unless he was very ill, he would be at work. |
| I wouldn't eat that food if I wasn't really hungry. | I wouldn't eat that food unless I was really hungry. |
| She would be here by now if she wasn't stuck in traffic. | She would be here by now unless she was stuck in traffic. |
III okres warunkowy: unless + czas Past Perfect
| Z if | Odpowiednik z unless |
|---|---|
| Our director would not have signed the contract if she hadn't had a lawyer present. | Our director would not have signed the contract unless she had had a lawyer present. |
| I wouldn't have phoned him if you hadn't suggested it. | I wouldn't have phoned him unless you'd suggested it. |
| They would have shot her if she hadn't given them the money. | They would have shot her unless she'd given them the money. |