Level: beginner
We use will:
- to express beliefs about the present or future
- to talk about what people want to do or are willing to do
- to make promises, offers and requests.
would is the past tense form of will. Because it is a past tense, it is used:
- to talk about the past
- to talk about hypotheses (when we imagine something)
- for politeness.
Beliefs
We use will to express beliefs about the present or future:
John will be in his office. (present)
We'll be late. (future)
We will have to take the train. (future)
We use would as the past of will, to describe past beliefs about the future:
I thought we would be late, so we would have to take the train.
Willingness
We use will:
- to talk about what people want to do or are willing to do:
We'll see you tomorrow.
Perhaps Dad will lend me the car.
- to talk about typical behaviour, things that we often do (because we are willing to do them):
We always spend our holidays at our favourite hotel at the seaside. We'll get up early every morning and have a quick breakfast then we'll go across the road to the beach.
We use would as the past tense of will:
- to talk about what people wanted to do or were willing to do in the past:
We had a terrible night. The baby wouldn't go to sleep.
Dad wouldn't lend me the car, so we had to take the train.
- to talk about typical behaviour, things that we often did (because we were willing to do them) in the past:
When they were children they used to spend their holidays at their grandmother's at the seaside. They'd get up early every morning and have a quick breakfast. Then they'd run across the road to the beach.
Promises, offers and requests
We use I will or We will to make promises and offers:
I'll give you a lift home after the party.
We'll come and see you next week.
We use Will you … ? or Would you … ? to make requests:
Will you carry this for me, please?
Would you please be quiet?
- will and would 1
- will and would 2
- will and would 3
Level: intermediate
Hypotheses and conditionals
We use will in conditionals to say what we think will happen in the present or future:
I'll give her a call if I can find her number.
You won't get in unless you have a ticket.
We use would to make hypotheses:
- when we imagine a situation:
It would be very expensive to stay in a hotel.
I would give you a lift, but my wife has the car today.
- in conditionals:
I would give her a call if I could find her number.
If I had the money, I'd buy a new car.
You would lose weight if you took more exercise.
If he got a new job, he would probably make more money.
What if he lost his job? What would happen then?
We also use conditionals to give advice :
Dan will help you if you ask him.
Past tenses are more polite:
Dan would help you if you asked him.
- will and would: hypotheses and conditionals
See also: Verbs in time clauses and conditionals
Level: beginner
Expressions with would
We use:
- would you…, would you mind (not) -ing for requests:
Would you carry this for me, please?
Would you mind carrying this?
Would you mind not telling him until tomorrow?
- would you like ..., would you like to ... for offers and invitations:
Would you like another drink?
Would you like to come round tomorrow?
- I would like …, I'd like … (you)(to) ... to say what we want or what we want to do:
I'd like that one, please.
I'd like to go home now.
- I'd rather… (= I would rather) to say what we prefer:
I'd rather have the new one, not the old one.
I don't want another drink. I'd rather go home.
- I would think, I would imagine, I'd guess to give an opinion when we are not sure or when we want to be polite:
It's very difficult, I would imagine.
I would think that's the right answer.
- Expressions with would 1
- Expressions with would 2
Hello, I see Peter M's use of "would" when answering a member's question as in "The best construction would be as follows". How does "would" work in this context?
We say 'I would suggest' when we want to be is a little more tentative/a little less direct than 'I suggest'. It's a way to be more polite and less pushy in terms of giving advice. After this phrase we generally avoid modal verbs like should as suggest already contains this meaning. The best construction would be as follows:
(https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/commandingheights/shared/minitext/prof_dengxiaoping.html#top)
Wealthy Nationalists were financing the training of young revolutionaries in Moscow who would restore China's dignity. Among Deng's fellow students was Chiang Ching-kno, son of the Nationalist Party leader Chiang Kai-shek. Much later, in the 1980s, the younger Chiang would succeed his father as president of Taiwan... It was at this time that Deng, not known for his aphorisms, made his most famous statement: "It doesn't matter whether a cat is black or white so long as it catches mice." Although he himself would later say he was not sure exactly what he had meant, it was very clearly an affirmation of pragmatism in economic policy in the aftermath of the fanaticism of the Great Leap. It was also a phrase that would find resonance around the world.
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My Questions: I have come across this structure many times when reading a famous person’s past history but I still don’t understand why WOULD is used instead of LATER + simple past.
Are the following correct (later + simple past )? What's the difference?
… the younger Chiang later succeeded his father as president of Taiwan… … Although he himself later said he was not sure exactly what he had meant... …It was also a phrase that later found resonance around the world.
Hello Curiosity,
In these examples 'would' is the past form of 'will'. All of these examples could be expressed with 'will' if the text were referring to the future:
Of course, this would require knowledge of the future, so it's not something we're likely to see. However, when we have knowledge of the future and are describing something in the past, we can use 'would' to describe what is to come. It's sometimes called 'future in the past' and you can read more about it here:
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/grammar/british-grammar/future-in-the-past
You can use a past form with a time marker such as 'later', just as you can use a present form with a time marker instead of 'will'. The difference is the same: 'will' or 'would' gives a sense of prediction and looking ahead, while the past or present tenses are more neutral and describe a simple sequence of actions.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Thank you sir
I have missed some important point in the above questions .I know we can use gerund and to infinitive after love, hate ,like etc
eg I like playing games.
I know sentence like these are correct
-I would suggest you stay here.
-I would recommend that you visit a doctor.
-I would like to have some coffee now.
My main questions are related to use of " would" as fututristic alternative to " will" to sound tentative and polite
1) Can we use gerund or noun after would like, would hate etc type of sentences. As you have said that we can use " will like" with gerund if sentence is related enjoyment in future. Can we use "would" with gerunds and to infinitive in relation to future in place of "will" to sound tentative in the similar sense as you have used "will" in the case of "will like" ? Will it be applicable to " would prefer" and other similar words ?
Eg. We are going to Delhi tomorrow. My friends will also join me there. I would like travelling ( or I would like to ) in day time if everyone will reach early in the morning.
2) As you have answered earlier that we can use "will" with opinion verbs like know, advice, suggest etc if they are futuristic and fits the contexts. Does use of "will "with these opinion verbs shows certainty.
3) Can we take futuristic approach with "would" with these opinion verbs in relation to future in place of "will" to sound tentative and polite or they can be used just to express our opinion at present in relation to present or future ?
Example :
I will suggest that she stay with us when I meet her in London next month.
Is it possible to use " would " to sound futuristic, polite and tentative in place of "will " in the same sense as " will " is used in the above example?
4) If we are using opinion verbs with " will" and present forms , are they expressing just opinion or its like a certainity?
I would be glad if you could help me with these problems with more examples.
Thank you Sir
Hey
I am facing some problem related to use of would and will. As we know we use would to express opinions and desires.
Eg I would suggest that you should go to London next month.
We know that we can use would in such a situation. What about this situation
Eg I would suggest her to stay with us when I meet her in London next month.
As the act of suggestion will take place in future, can we use would in such a case or "will " would be appropriate. Can we use will to express our opinion and desire which are related to present and future. Please help me to clarify this issue
Thank you
Hello ravindersolanki1,
We say 'I would suggest' when we want to be is a little more tentative/a little less direct than 'I suggest'. It's a way to be more polite and less pushy in terms of giving advice. After this phrase we generally avoid modal verbs like should as suggest already contains this meaning. The best construction would be as follows:
or
If the act of suggesting is in the future then 'will suggest' (or going to, if the context suits it) is fine:
Note that the rest of the sentence follows the patterns above. We do not use 'to' after 'suggest':
or
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Thank you sir for helping me. I have another issue related to this. As you have said we can use will in the future if the act of suggesting is in future. Does it apply to other opinion verbs like advise , recommend, think etc and also does it apply to desire verbs as like , love , prefer etc. Can we say:
Eg.
I will like to stay in London
I will be glad if he helps me in completing the assignment
So
1)Can we use will in relation to opinion or desires happening in future?
2) As we can use would for the present opinion and desires, can we use "would" in place of will even if this act of expression of opinion and desire happen in the future
3) can we use "will" in sentences like : I would be glad, i would be happy etc
I would be happy if you can answer these questions.
Thank you Sir 🙏🏼
Hello again ravindersolanki1,
You can use 'will' with like but it needs to be followed by -ing rather than to-infinitive:
I will like staying in London.
This is because like + -ing has the sense of enjoy whereas like + to-infinitive describes a choice or preference of activity; with this second meaning we would use a present form. The same is true of similar verbs such as love, hate, not mind etc.
Verbs like advise, recommend and think can be used with 'will', as long as the context is appropriate.
Yes, if you are predicting how you will feel in the future rather than expressing a general opinion.
This is dependent on the context. Would may imply an unlikely/hypothetical situation, for example.
Yes.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello TheLearnEnglish team,
The people clapped Peter more than they had done the District Superintendent, and then everybody shook hands with them, and as soon as politeness would let them, they got away, and tore up the hill to Three Chimneys with their watches in their hands.
My question is, 'would' is used for past habits. But in the above paragraph, to me, it seems like would is used for a single past completed action rather than repeated action. Could you please explain it clearly?
Hello jitu_jaga,
I wouldn't use 'would' in that situation either. I'm afraid I can't explain why the writer might have chosen to use it there.
Best wishes,
Kirk
LearnEnglish team
Can you explain how "would" works when speaker B answers A's question?
A: Should "the" be capitalized when it is part of a title and the title cannot go without the definite article?
The specific example is "the Green Airport" (name of a project that deals with building environment-friendly airports).
B: Well, as a title, the first word is always capitalised. So it would be The Green Airport.
Hello koclock,
It seems to me you've already asked this question in various forms several times. Would is very common when giving advice or suggestions based on applying a calculation or rule. For example:
You can think of it as a hypothetical situation if you wish (you haven't bought the potatoes yet and you haven't said the phrase correctly yet) or just as a politeness marker - it is in fact both of these things.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello!
Can you please enlighten me if "would" can be used instead of "do" in a question where we want to know the reason behind someone's opinion. In this sentence, use of would is possible or not?" why would you say so" or "why would he has such opinion".
Hello maryamzahra,
Yes, that's exactly how we use it. Well done!
(though it should be 'have' rather than 'has' in your second example)
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
In this dialogue, Speaker B uses "would" when answering A's question. Can you explain why use "would" rather than "is?"
A: Ronaldo wore this? Is my question idiomatic?
B: If you say it like that, it sounds as though you’ve been told he did wear it but you don’t believe it.
The normal question format would be “Did Ronaldo wear this?”
Hello koclok,
You could use 'is' here:
The normal question format is “Did Ronaldo wear this?”
Using 'would' is quite common, however, when giving advice. It makes the advice sound more polite - less like an instruction and more like a suggestion. You can imagine it as a hypothetical situation: If you wanted to say this properly, you would say....
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello, Peter M. You use "could" in your sentence "you could use 'is' here". What does "could" mean?
Hello again koclock,
'Could' here describes an option: You could do x or you could do y - it's your choice.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
I'm a bit confused, sir. Does "could" express possibility or conditional?
Hello again koclock,
I think your confusion arises from the fact that you are trying to limit the uses of 'could' to only two possibilities. Modals have a wide range of uses and the use of could is not limited to only possibility or conditionality. As I said, here could expresses an option or a choice.
You can read more about various uses of could on this page:
https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/grammar/english-grammar-reference/can-could
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Why does this sentence use "will?" Why not use "would?"
It will be a real disappointment for Gareth Southgate more than anyone else - he has done so much for England.
Hello koclok,
Will and would are possible here. Will suggests the speaker thinks the situation is more likely; would suggests he or she thinks it is less likely.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Thank you sir. Can you give an example dialogue of "will" that the situation is more likely? So both are clear for me.
Hello again koclok,
Certainly.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Can you explain the use of "would" in these sentences?
Scotland fans, this would be a good result for you in terms of the third-place qualification spot. Providing Steve Clarke's side can beat Hungary on Sunday.
68 mins
Georgia 1-1 Czech Republic
Oh dear. It looks like Patrik Schick is going to have to go off. He appears to be holding his calf.
That is a real shame for the goalscorer. This would be a real blow for the Czech Republic. He's holding his calf. You'd hope it's cramp at this stage of the game.
Hello Tempek,
In both sentences would describes a future situation which is seen as possible but uncertain: the result may not hold and Schick may end up not going off.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi everyone. I would like to understand the use of "would" in this sentence. Can you explain?
Note that, when there are multiple auxiliary verbs, some of these may be elided as well. For example, in reply to "Who's been leaving the milk out of the refrigerator?", any of "You've been doing it," "You have been," or "You have" would have the same meaning
Hi Tempek,
Would shows an action or situation that is just imagined, and not real (i.e., it is hypothetical). By using "would" here, the speaker/writer shows that they are not talking about a specific thing that they heard somebody actually say in real life. Instead, they are imagining this situation and question/answer.
Jonathan
LearnEnglish team
Thanks, Jonathan. Is it OK to substitute "would" for "will" in the sentence?
Hello Tempek,
English teachers are often talking about hypothetical situations, i.e. situations when it's possible to use different forms, and so we use 'would' a lot. But you are right: it is possible to use 'will' here. But I bet 8 or 9 out of 10 teachers would say 'would'. (Do you see how I just used it!?)
Best wishes,
Kirk
LearnEnglish team
Hello, can you explain how "would" works in this sentence?
The gaffer has mentioned staying to me and I'd be more than happy to do that.
Hello Nyenok,
Would here makes the statement hypothetical in the sense that the speaker has not made a decision or perhaps even been directly asked. The speaker is thinking about what they might say or how they might feel if the situation arises, but is still not entirely sure that it will. If you change the verb phrase to make it present tense (I am more than happy...) then it suggests that the speaker has thought about this and already reached a decision, and that they consider it likely that they will be asked or even have been asked (a question of the speaker's interpretation of what 'mentioned' means here).
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello, would you please help me with below questions? Thank you.
Question 1:
We use will to express beliefs about the present or future:
John will be in his office. (present) = Does it mean " I believe John is in his office now" ?
Question 2:
I'll give her a call if I can find her number. = Does it mean "I don't remember her number now. But don't worry, I have written her number down in my notebook(or some other way I believe I can find her number) . When I find her number, I will give her a call." ?
Question 3:
We use would to make hypotheses:
when we imagine a situation: It would be very expensive to stay in a hotel.
I am telling my friend about my travel last month. I didn't stay in a hotel. Now I want to tell my friend why I didn't stay in a hotel back then. Could I say " It would be very expensive to say in at hotel, so I chose to stay in a tent."? or "If had stayed in a hotel, it would have been very expensive." ?
Question 4:
Below are some passages from a novel.
“After Wei Wuxian’s death, judgment of his character was no longer refutable. The discussions were mostly the same, and any small voice of dissent was immediately squashed.
However, gloom still firmly enveloped everyone’s minds.
Although the Yiling Patriarch, Wei Wuxian, had died at the Burial Mound, the remnants of his soul couldn’t be summoned.
Perhaps his soul had also been ripped apart and devoured by the millions of ghosts. Or perhaps it had escaped.
The former would naturally be a joyous occasion for the entire world. However, the Yiling Patriarch had the ability to topple the earth and move mountains and seas—at least, that was what the legends said. It would be no great task for him to resist soul-summoning if he desired it. If his spirit returned in the future…if he took over a body and was reincarnated, then the cultivation world—the entire mortal world, in fact—would be cursed to face even greater vengeance, sinking into an endless storm of darkness and blood.”
My question is about the use of "would" in the two sentences "It would be no great task for him to resist soul-summoning if he desired it. " and "... would be cursed to face even greater vengeance, ..." Are the two "would" the past tense of "will" to describe past beliefs about the future ? or just imagining situations ?
Hello Nora2024000000,
I'll try to answer each question in turn.
Yes, that's right.
Yes, that's correct. Note that the speaker uses 'if' rather than 'when', so it is not entirely certain that the speaker will be able to find the number.
Here the sentence describes a counter-factual past situation so would have been + verb3 is needed, not just would + verb.
In both sentences would describes an imagined situation - the result of a hypothetical condition introduced by 'if'.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello Peter,
Thank you for the reply. Hope you have a great day.
About the use of would in questions 3 and questions 4, they all talk about past imagined situations. Why is "would have been + verb3" needed in question 3 while in question 4 it is good to use "would+base verb" ? I know "would have been + verb3" is a way of talking about something didn't happen in the past, so this pattern doesn't fit question 4. But I still don't understand why "would + base verb" can be used an imagined situation in the past. Wouldn't it be confused with conditional 2 ( Second conditional: The second conditional is used to imagine present or future situations that are impossible or unlikely in reality. ) That's why I had thought it was the past tense of will to describe past beliefs about the future.
In another sentence "It would be no great task for him to resist soul-summoning if he desired it." Is this "would" also describes an imagined situation?
Please help me with the questions. Thank you.
Hello again Nora2024000000,
Sentence 3 describes a past imagined situation, as you say, so I think this one is clear. Sentence 4, however, does not describe a past imagined situation but rather something which is a general truth in the context of the narrative. This is true in several other instances in the passage. For example, it is unknown whether or not Wei Wuxian's soul was destroyed or escaped, but would have been a joyous occasion would suggest that the answer is already known [the soul being destroyed would have been a joyous occasion, but unfortunately it didn't happen]. Using would + verb avoids this.
The sentence 'It would be no great task for him to resist soul-summoning if he desired it' looks like a hypothetical statement about Wei Wuxian's abilities, rather than a description of a single event, though this is a contextual interpretation.
The sentence 'if he took over a body and was reincarnated, then the cultivation world—the entire mortal world, in fact—would be cursed to face even greater vengeance' describes a hypothetical situation rather than a counter-factual. We don't know if he took over a body or not, whereas 'If he had taken over...' would suggest that we know that he did not and are speculating about a counter-factual alternative.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello ,i am very confused by utility of present simple with would . We know that we cannot use present simple with past simple in general sense ,like "if it rains ,you could do that". It is as i know from all English rules i have been taught . But i often see such things like "i think it would be nice" How so?It is present with would! Or "I would think about it is rather possible than not" , and finally " If he is from US ,i would like to ask him..." . Aren't they present simple ,and would past? And it doesn't fit typical conditional structures .
Hello DolmaMinistr,
Would can be seen as the past form of will in certain contexts, such as when talking about the future in the past:
However, would is really a modal verb with its own meaning and use, and not only a past form. We can use would to describe future time, past time, to talk about probability, possibility, past habitual actions, hypothetical situations, to make requests, for example.
The same point (many different uses) can be made with could. In your first example, could is not a past form of can, but rather a modal verb expressing possibility:
The main point here is that would (and could) are not only past forms and so the rule you're trying to apply is not relevant to the example.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hello
Is this correct ?
I would say he was about fifty ( mean would future in the past because he was about fifty )
I would say you are about fifty ( mean would future because you are about fifty )
Helo uo,
The phrase I would say here is not about future but rather an expression for making an estimate. You can think of it as part of a longer expression:
If I had to guess, I would say....
If you asked me, I would say...
The second part (was or is) depends on whether you are talking about the past or present. The present is clear: fifty is his age now, in your opinion. The past is less clear. It could mean at a time in the past (three years ago / in 2020 / when I knew him / when I was at school etc) or it could mean when I saw him, which may be recent enough to still be true (last week / yesterday etc).
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi Peter
1- would could be past and could be present or future
would means past if the context of the past (meaning before or after a past sentence or last week / yesterday etc.)
would means present or future if the context of the present or future (meaning before or after a present or future sentence or Next week tomorrow etc.)
2 the difference between would in the past AND would have p.p
would in the past (means to talk about something that did not happen OR happened)
Examples
yesterday I would call Lisa but I didn't have her number (means did not happen )
yesterday I would call Lisa and I did (means happened)
would have p.p ( (just meaning did not happen)
Example
we would have gone for a swim. but we didn't go for a swim
Hello uo,
What you say in 1 looks correct to me.
In 2, the sentence 'I would call Lisa, but I didn't have her number' is not grammatically correct. When we speak about an 'imaginary past' (in other words, a past action that did not happen), we use 'would have'. So if yesterday I intended to call Lisa but could not because I didn't have her number, the correct form is 'I would have called Lisa, but I didn't have her number'. Your other example with 'would have' (about swimming) is correct.
I'm not sure what the intended meaning of 'would call' in 'I would call Lisa and I did' is. While it's true that 'would' is a past tense form of 'will', we don't use it to talk about wants or intentions in this way. Rather, we say something like 'I wanted to call Lisa and I did' or 'I planned to call Lisa and I did'. Actually, unless there is a particular reason to separate the intention to call Lisa and the act of calling Lisa, most of the time I'd say simply 'I called Lisa'.
Hope this helps.
Best wishes,
Kirk
LearnEnglish team
Hello Peter
Is this correct ?
When I mean would in the past I must put past sentence OR Past time expressions (yesterday, last week) before OR after would OR only I must put past sentence OR Past time expressions (yesterday, last week)
before would ?
examples after would :
1- I would be late I thought ( mean would future in the past because I thought )
2- I would call Lisa but I didn't have her number ( mean would future in the past because I didn't have her number )
3- I would call Lisa yesterday ( mean would future in the past because yesterday )
4- I would play football every month When I was a child ( mean would typical behaviour in the past because When I was a child)
examples before would :
1- I thought we would be late ( mean would future in the past because I thought )
2- I didn't have her number I would call Lisa but ( mean would future in the past because I didn't have her number )
3- yesterday I would call Lisa ( mean would future in the past because yesterday )
4- When I was a child I would play football every month ( mean would typical behaviour in the past because When I was a child)
Hello uo,
In general, it doesn't matter if past time expressions go before or after 'would'. However, there are some restrictions. Since most time expressions are adverbials, and since different kinds of adverbials go in certain positions in sentences, many time expressions normally go before or after 'would'.
One example of this is adverbs of frequency -- words like 'always', 'never', 'often', etc. Normally these adverbs go between a modal verb and the infinitive. So you can say 'I would always go', but 'I always would go' or 'I would go always' are not correct.
Another example is (your sentence 1) 'I think' (or 'I thought'). Most of the time, this comes first in a sentence. So while it is possible to say 'I would be late I thought', most of the time we say 'I thought I would be late'.
Please note that, if I've understood you, your sentences 2 and 3 are not correct. 2 is talking about an action that did not happen, so it should be 'I would have called Lisa but I didn't have her number'. Sentence 3 would be something like 'Yesterday I was going to call Lisa'.
I hope this helps.
Best wishes,
Kirk
LearnEnglish team
Hello TheLearnEnglishTeam,
JAKE Have I seen her dance?
BRIAN No. During high school, she got into a really good conservatory, and I ran into her a couple of times after that, and she was always about to get this, or about to get that. But each time, her arm would be in a sling, or she would be on crutches. She would have a pulled ligament. Or a stress fracture in her back. The last time I saw her, I ran into her on the subway, it was clear she hadn't danced for years. She was fat. You would have never imagined that she was the same girl.
Could you please clarify in the above paragraph the uses of "would"are for future in the past or for past state. As far as I know, in english would is used for past habits not for states. But here, to me it seems like the writer has used would for past states.
What is your point? please state..
Thanks...
Hello jitu_jaga,
The use of would that you are referring to is for describing past habits or states - used to for past habitual actions or states, would for only past habitual actions. However, this is not the use here as the actions/states described are not habits or even repeated actions but examples. What the author is really saying is that each time he or she saw the girl she had had an accident of some kind - each time a different accident. You can see this clearly because you cannot change would to used to in these examples.
The use of would here is actually a kind of prediction or expectation. Imagine the speaker is actually talking about meetings that happen regularly and is describing what he or she expects. In that case they would use will:
This is the use of will for expressing expectations. It describes what we expect based on what we know. The use of would in your example is the same, but in past time.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Thank you Peter. Have a nice day...
Hi team,
I am just wondering, is this correct -
"If we do nothing, the rainforest would surely be lost within a generation or two" ? This example was in below web address:
<https://www.thesaurus.com/e/grammar/will-vs-would/#when-to-use-will-or-…;.
I think it should be - "If we did nothing, the rainforest would surely be lost within a generation or two".
Regards,
Kiran
Hello kiranpn,
I agree with you that this is a non-standard form which incorrectly mixes real (likely) and unreal (unlikely) clauses.
I would suggest If we do... the rainforest will surely be or If we did... the rainforest would surely be..., depending on how likely doing something is to the speaker.
The site does not seem a very reliable source of grammar information in general. Even on that page there is another mistake where 'will' is described as forming a future tense. The overwhelming consensus amongst grammarians is that English has no future tense and that 'will' is a modal verb which can refer to the future, not a tense.
Peter
The LearnEnglish Team
Could you explain to me why would is used in the sentence below?
The degree that I’m taking will qualify me for becoming a nutrition consultant, not a nutritionist. In order to become a nutritionist, I would need to attend medical school.