To many Vietnamese learners who have been learning English for a long
time, English grammar still seems to be a puzzle. Among a number of complex
problems, conditional sentences are really a challenge. They are difficult because
of their complicated structures with two clauses: subordinate clause or if -clause
and main clause. In addition, there are many variations which may cause
confusion. The meanings of conditional sentences are subtle; therefore in order to
understand them, we need to be sensitive enough. Moreover, any conditional
sentence is a combination of tense and a range of auxiliaries which require learners
to grasp before being able to understand and use it.
Furthermore, conditional sentences represent an obstacle to Vietnamese
learners in the English-Vietnamese translation process. There are a large number of
problems they may have while translating these conditional sentences, especially
unreal conditional ones into Vietnamese. They may produce worse or even wrong
version to the original one, as many students do not really have full understanding
of unreal conditionals. In order to correctly and satisfactorily translate them into
Vietnamese, it is worth studying their definitions, types and characteristics. Also,
students should look into techniques of translation by examining unreal conditional
sentences translated by famous practitioners. Since they are such high barriers to
learners, I find it necessary to discuss the topic ” Unreal conditionals and ways to
translate them into Vietnamese” in my paper.