Let's learn how to talk about hypothetical situations in Spanish – things that are unreal or unlikely to happen. To do this, we connect a condition with a result using a specific structure: the 'if' clause uses the imperfect subjunctive, and the main clause uses the conditional.

The pattern is 'si' plus a verb in the imperfect subjunctive, followed by a result in the conditional. A classic example is 'Si tuviera dinero, viajaría por el mundo', which means 'If I had money, I would travel the world'. Notice 'tuviera' is the imperfect subjunctive and 'viajaría' is the conditional.

We use this structure to talk about things that are contrary to the reality of the present. For example, if you don't live near the sea, you could say 'Si viviera cerca del mar, nadaría todos los días'. This means 'If I lived near the sea, I would swim every day'.