Mixed conditionals are a combination of the 2nd and 3rd conditionals, so let’s review them first.
•Second Conditional – It follows the formula If + past simple, would/might/could + infinitive
👉 If I were rich, I‘d buy that house → Si tuviera dinero, compraría esa casa
•Third Conditional – It follows the formula if + had + past participle, would/might/could + have + past participle
👉 If you had studied more, you would have passed the exam → Si hubieras estudiado más, habrías aprobado el examen
1 – Mixed third + second conditional
We use this combination to talk about a hypothetical condition happening in the past (third conditional) with a PRESENT RESULT(second conditional).
We use the formula if + past perfect, would/could/might + infinitive
👉 If I had been elected, I would be the president now → Si hubiera sido elegido, AHORA sería presidente
👉 If I had won the lottery, I would be rich → Si hubiera ganado la lotería, AHORA sería rico
👉 I might have a better job now if I hadn’t dropped out of school → Si no hubiera abandonado el colegio, AHORA podría tener un mejor trabajo
2 – Mixed second + third conditional
We use this combination to talk about a hypothetical condition happening in the present (second conditional) with a PAST RESULT (third conditional)
We use the formula if + past simple, would/could/might + have + past participle
👉 If I were a man, they would have given me the job yesterday → Si fuera un hombre, me habrían dado el trabajo AYER
👉 If I didn’t have so much work, I would have gone to the party last night → Si no tuviera tanto trabajo, habría ido a la fiesta ANOCHE
👉 I would have understood them if I spoke German → Si hablara alemán, les habría entendido