Questions · ESL hypotheticals
Hypothetical questions for practicing “If I could…”
The second conditional is easy to explain and hard to use without thinking. These imaginary situations give students a reason to say “If I could, I would” over and over until it sounds natural.
- 16 questions
- EN + TL on every card
- Free in the app
Kumustahan is a bilingual conversation card app: 1,200 questions in English and Filipino across 7 decks, with a short reflection on the back of every card.
If you could pause time, when would you use it?
Kung kaya mong i-pause ang oras, kailan mo ito gagamitin?
During the pause, would you rush to do something or enjoy the quiet?
Habang naka-pause, may mamadaliin ka bang gawin o mae-enjoy mo ang katahimikan?
The questions
16 hypothetical questions for English class
Every question in English and Filipino/Tagalog, word for word from the Kumustahan decks. Open “Back of the card” for the reflection printed on the other side.
Imaginary powers and inventions
6 questions
Pure fantasy. Nobody can get it wrong.
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If you could pause time, when would you use it?
Kung kaya mong i-pause ang oras, kailan mo ito gagamitin?
Back of the card
During the pause, would you rush to do something or enjoy the quiet?
Habang naka-pause, may mamadaliin ka bang gawin o mae-enjoy mo ang katahimikan?
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Which everyday invention from the future would you most want to see?
Anong pang-araw-araw na gamit mula sa future ang gusto mong makita?
Back of the card
Give the invention a name people could remember.
Bigyan ang imbensiyon ng pangalang madaling tandaan.
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Make one harmless rule that the whole world follows for a day.
Kung may isang rule na susundin ng buong mundo nang isang araw, ano iyon? Dapat walang masasaktan.
Back of the card
Imagine everyone following it at once. What small scene would be funny or helpful to watch?
Isipin na sabay-sabay itong ginagawa ng lahat. Ano ang nakakatawa o helpful na makikita mo?
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Choose a memory power: remember every name or remember every route you have taken.
Pumili ng memory power: tandaan lahat ng pangalan o lahat ng daang nadaanan mo.
Back of the card
Give your memory power a name. It can sound heroic or completely ordinary.
Bigyan ng pangalan ang memory power mo. Puwedeng pang-hero o ordinaryo lang.
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Pick one comic-book power: fly anywhere or appear instantly in another place.
Pumili ng comic-book power: lumipad kahit saan o makarating agad sa ibang lugar.
Back of the card
You have an afternoon to try your power. Choose your first stop.
May isang hapon ka para subukan ang power mo. Piliin ang unang pupuntahan mo.
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Which button would you rather have: pause a busy hour or replay a favorite hour?
Kung may time button, alin ang pipiliin mo: i-pause ang isang abalang oras o ulitin ang paborito mong oras?
Back of the card
Your button needs a label. What would you write on it?
Kailangan ng label ang button mo. Ano ang isusulat mo rito?
If your life were a little different
6 questions
A dream room, a free hour with friends, a new language overnight.
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With an unlimited budget, what extra room would you add to your home?
Kung walang limit ang budget, anong dagdag na kuwarto ang gusto mo sa bahay?
Back of the card
If the new room had a sign on its door, what would it say?
Kung may karatula sa pinto ng bagong kuwarto, ano ang nakasulat doon?
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Which language would you learn instantly if you woke up fluent tomorrow?
Kung paggising mo bukas ay marunong ka na ng isang bagong language, ano ang pipiliin mo?
Back of the card
Choose the first person you would like to talk to in that language.
Piliin ang unang taong gusto mong makausap gamit ang wikang iyon.
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If someone funded one helpful idea for your neighborhood, what would you build or improve?
Kung may sasagot sa gastos, ano ang gagawin o aayusin mo para makatulong sa lugar ninyo?
Back of the card
Picture its first day in use. What would you be happy to see people doing?
Isipin ang unang araw na ginagamit na ito. Ano ang ikatutuwa mong ginagawa ng mga tao?
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Imagine a place to stay: tiny with a great view or huge but far from everything. Which do you choose?
Isipin ang titirhan mo: maliit pero maganda ang view o malaki pero malayo sa lahat. Alin ang pipiliin mo?
Back of the card
Put one favorite thing in your new place. What belongs there?
Maglagay ng isang paborito mong bagay sa bagong titirhan mo. Ano iyon?
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If your old phone could save only one, would you keep the photos or the messages?
Kung isa lang ang mase-save sa lumang phone mo, photos o messages ang ititira mo?
Back of the card
Imagine giving the saved memories a title. No need to show any photos or messages.
Isipin na bibigyan mo ng pamagat ang natirang mga alaala. Hindi kailangang magpakita ng photos o messages.
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If you and your friends had just one free hour, how would you spend it together?
Kung isang oras lang kayong lahat libre, ano ang gagawin ninyo?
Back of the card
Save a few minutes at the end for one thing you would not want to rush.
Puwede kang maglaan ng ilang minuto sa dulo para sa bagay na ayaw mong madaliin.
Time, trips and second chances
4 questions
For stronger students: past days, imagined tours and braver choices.
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What day from the past would you like to watch?
Anong araw sa nakaraan ang gusto mong mapanood?
Back of the card
Pause on one scene from that day. Which detail would you want to look at longer?
Huminto muna sa isang eksena ng araw na iyon. Anong detalye ang gusto mong tingnan nang mas matagal?
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Choose a safe tour: outer space or the bottom of the ocean.
Pumili ng ligtas na tour: outer space o ilalim ng dagat.
Back of the card
Choose one sight from the tour you would want as your phone wallpaper.
Pumili ng tanawin sa tour na gusto mong gawing wallpaper sa phone.
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Picture meeting an old friend after a few years. What would you want to do together first?
Isipin na nagkita kayo ng dating friend makalipas ang ilang taon. Ano ang una mong gustong gawin ninyo?
Back of the card
You could begin with the most ordinary thing you used to do together.
Puwedeng magsimula sa pinakasimpleng dati ninyong ginagawa nang magkasama.
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What would you try if failure felt less embarrassing?
Ano ang susubukan mo kung hindi gaanong nakakahiya ang pumalya?
Back of the card
Embarrassment can make the room feel smaller than it is. The thing you would try may still be worth naming.
Kayang paliitin ng hiya ang mundo mo. Pero yung bagay na susubukan mo, baka worth pa ring pangalanan.
How to use them
Before you ask
Hypothetical questions are the most natural way to practice conditionals: once a student imagines a room they would add or a language they would wake up speaking, “If I could…, I would…” stops being a grammar rule and becomes the obvious way to answer.
Textbook conditional exercises usually ask students to complete someone else’s sentence. That builds accuracy but not fluency. Imaginary questions about the learner’s own life produce dozens of conditionals in ten minutes, with real reasons attached.
Write the two halves on the board (“If I could…” / “I would… because…”). Pairs take turns: one asks, one answers, the asker adds a follow-up like “What would you do first?” Stronger groups can move to the last set, which pulls in the past (“If I could watch one day again…”) and braver what-ifs about the student’s own life.
Good for
Tips
- Correct the form gently: “If I could, I would”, not “If I can, I will”.
- Push one step further every time: “And then what would you do?”
- Turn the best answers into a short paragraph for homework.
- Use contractions in your model answers (I’d, wouldn’t) so students hear them.
- Mix in a real question afterward so the imagining connects back to their life.
Decks for this
ESL hypothetical questions
Frequently asked questions
What are good hypothetical questions for ESL students?
Imaginary situations close to everyday life: a room you would add, a language you could speak overnight, a button that pauses a busy hour. They are easy to picture and lead straight to the second conditional.
How do I teach the second conditional through conversation?
Put the sentence frame on the board, model one answer, and let pairs ask each other imaginary questions. Correct the form after the activity, not during it.
Are these questions okay for teens?
Yes. They are playful and contain nothing inappropriate for school. For more two-choice questions, see the would-you-rather page.
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