Question

Fill in the blank with the most appropriate word.
I have to work about 80 hours a week, so I’m very busy. But if I ____ any spare time, I ____ a sport like a golf.
a)Will have/ will take up
b)Had/ will take up
c)Will have/ had
d)Had/ would take up

Answer 1

Hint: The Second Conditional or the Conditional Type 2 is used to refer to unreal or imaginary situations in the present or the future.

Complete step-by-step answer:

A Second Conditional sentence includes two clauses: The ‘if’ clause and the main clause. Both clauses utilize a different form of verbs:
‘If’ clause- If + subject + Past tense form of the verb
Main clause- Subject + would + verb
So, we use the past tense form of the verb in Second Conditional sentences.
Let’s look at the given options:
Will have/will take up- These verbs are in the form of the future tense. Hence, it is an incorrect option.
Had/will take up- The first verb is in the past tense form but the second verb is in the future tense form. Hence, it is an incorrect option.
Will have/had- The first verb is in the future tense form and the second verb is in the past tense form. Hence, it is an incorrect option.
Had/would take up- The first verb is in the past tense form and the second verb is also in the past tense form. Also, ‘would’ is preferably used in the main clause of the second conditional sentences. Hence, it is the correct option.
The correct answer is Option ‘d’.

Note: The main clause of a second conditional sentence cannot function without ‘would’.