PART③ なら┃”IF” (conditional と vs たら vs なら) Differences

Today, we’re going to learn how to say “if” and “when” using なら(nara). This article covers the concepts from this video. I recommend you watch the video first and read this article whenever you want to review.

Using なら to Say “If”

Previously, we learned how to say “if” and “when” using と(to) and たら(tara). As you may recall, when you use たら, the first clause must be true in order for the second to be true.

Clause 1 たら、clause 2。
If clause 1, then clause 2.

日本にほんに行いったら、秋葉原あきはばらに行いきたい。
Nihon ni ittara, Akihabara ni ikitai.
If I go to Japan, I want to visit Akihabara.
Clause 1 → Clause 2

But what if you want to say something in the opposite order? Say you wanted to buy a camera before you go to Japan so you can take lots of pictures of Akihabara. In this case, you can use なら like this:

日本にほんに行いくなら、まずカメラを買かう。
Nihon ni iku nara, mazu kamera wo kau.
If I go to Japan, I’ll buy a camera first.
Clause 2 → Clause 1

Unlike in the previous sentence, the second clause happens before the first one.

Here’s another example. Say your father told you that you have to get married before you can have a child. For this sentence, we will use the words 欲しい(hoshii) and しなければ(shinakereba).

子供こどもが欲ほしいなら、結婚けっこんしなければいけません。
Kodomo ga hoshii nara, kekkon shinakereba ikemasen.
If you want a child, you have to get married first.

You can also use しなきゃだめ(shinakya dame) or just しなきゃ(shinakya) if you want to sound less formal, the way an actual dad would talk to his child.

子供こどもが欲ほしいなら、結婚けっこんしなきゃ。
Kodomo ga hoshii nara, kekkon shinakya.
子供こどもが欲ほしいなら、結婚けっこんしなきゃだめ。
Kodomo ga hoshii nara, kekkon shinakya dame.
If you want a child, you have to get married first.

*You can learn more about しなきゃ in this video.

Suppose you want to be fluent in Japanese (I sure hope so, if you’re reading this!). It would certainly help if you lived in Japan. Let’s try saying that using たら.

日本にほんに住すんだら、日本語にほんごがペラペラになる。
Nihon ni sundara, nihongo ga pera pera ni naru.
日本にほんに住すんだら、日本語にほんごが話はなせるようになる。
Nihon ni sundara, nihongo ga hanaseru you ni naru.
If I live in Japan, (then) I’ll be fluent in Japanese.

But maybe you want to work in Japan, and you want to study Japanese first. In that case:

日本にほんで働はたらきたいなら、日本語にほんごを勉強べんきょうしなきゃ。
Nihon de hatarakitai nara, nihongo wo benkyou shinakya.
If I want to work in Japan, I must study Japanese (first).

そう言うなら(Sou iu nara)

There is another way to use なら. It can be used to say “If you say so…” For example, your senpai tells you that he is going to karaoke after work, and you decide to go with him. In that case, you can say:

先輩せんぱいがそう言いうなら、私わたしも行いきます。
Senpai ga sou iu nara, watashi mo ikimasu.
If you (senpai) say so, I will go, too.
Clause 1 → Clause 2

Notice that when we use なら like this, the first clause happens before the second one.

Or maybe your senpai recommends the latest single by Kenshi Yonezu. You haven’t heard the song for yourself, but you believe your senpai has great taste, so whatever song he recommends must be good. In that case, you can say:

先輩せんぱいが好すきなら、この曲きょくは凄すごいはず。
Senpai ga suki nara, kono kyoku wa sugoi hazu.
If/Given that my senpai likes it, this song must be awesome.

Or maybe your senpai says he will quit smoking, and you decide to quit smoking, too.

先輩せんぱいがタバコをやめるなら、私わたしもタバコをやめる。
Senpai ga tabako wo yameru nara, watashi mo tabako wo yameru.
If/Given that my senpai will quit smoking, I’ll quit, too.

Using Context with なら

Let’s say you want to go for a picnic tomorrow, but you just found out that it might rain tomorrow. In this case, you can use either なら or たら.

明日あした雨あめが降ふるなら、ピクニックに行いかないほうがいい。
Ashita ame ga furu nara, pikunikku ni ikanai hou ga ii.
明日あした雨あめが降ふったら、ピクニックに行いかないほうがいい。
Ashita ame ga futtara, pikunikku ni ikanai hou ga ii.
If/Given that it rains tomorrow, we shouldn’t go for a picnic.

However, there’s a small difference between using ならand たら. なら is used when you follow up on something you heard. So when you use なら, it implies that you just found out somewhere that it might rain tomorrow.

Here’s another example. If your friend says that she has a headache, then you can say:

痛いたいなら、薬くすりを飲のんだほうがいい。
Itai nara, kusuri wo nonda hou ga ii.
If/Given that it hurts, you should take medicine.

Or maybe it seems like your friend has a headache, but she says nothing, and you’re not sure. In that case, you can use like たらthis:

頭あたまが痛いたかったら、薬くすりを飲のんだほうがいいよ。
Atama ga itakattara, kusuri wo nonda hou ga ii yo.
If you have a headache, you should take medicine.

Suppose you want to eat ice cream, and you say to yourself:

アイスを食たべたい。コンビニに行いこうかな。
Aisu wo tabetai. Konbini ni ikou kana.
I want to eat ice cream. I think I might go to the convenience store.

*You use かな(kana) here because you’re talking to yourself.

Then your mother overhears you, and she uses ならto say:

コンビニに行いくなら、牛乳ぎゅうにゅうを買かってきて。
Konbini ni iku nara, gyuunyuu wo kattekite.
If you’re going to the convenience store, buy some milk.

As another example, suppose you want to go to Shibuya Station, but you don’t know which train to take, so you ask someone:

渋谷駅しぶやえきに行いきたいんですが…
Shibuya eki ni ikitain desu ga…
I’d like to get to Shibuya Station.

*You don’t need to use a complete sentence here, since most people can guess what you want to ask from the context.

渋谷駅しぶやえきに行いきたいなら、JR山手線やまのてせんに乗のり換かえてください。
Shibuya eki ni ikitai nara, JR yamanote sen ni norikaete kudasai.
If/Given that you’d like to go to Shibuya Station, please transfer to the JR Yamanote Line.

Example Sentences

携帯けいたいを使つかうなら、外そとに出でてください。
Keitai wo tsukau nara, soto ni dete kudasai.
If/Given that you will use the phone, please go outside.

負まけたくないなら、強つよくならなきゃダメだ！
Maketakunai nara, tsuyoku naranakya dame da!
If/Given that you don’t want to lose, you must become strong!

日本語にほんごが上手じょうずになりたいなら、もっと練習れんしゅうしなきゃ。
Nihonga ga jouzu ni naritai nara, motto renshuu shinakya.
If/Given that you want to improve your Japanese, you have to practice more.

Using なら to Show Contrast

Another way to use なら is to show contrast when by pairing it with a noun. For example, you go to a cafe and order 緑茶 (ryokucha), or green tea (not to be confused with maccha, which is also known as green tea).

緑茶りょくちゃがありますか。
Ryokucha ga arimasuka.
Do you have green tea?

However, the cafe doesn’t have green tea, so the waiter uses なら to recommend black tea:

紅茶こうちゃならあります。
Koucha nara arimasu.
We have black tea (but not green tea).

Or maybe you ask your friend if he can speak German, and he replies that he can’t speak German, but he can speak Dutch.

ドイツ語ごが話はなせますか？
Doitsugo ga hanasemasuka?
Can you speak German?

オランダ語ごなら話はなせます。
Orandago nara hanasemasu.
I can speak Dutch (but not German).

Similarly, it is possible to use は instead of なら to say to show contrast, like this:

ドイツ語ごが話はなせません。でも、オランダ語ごは話はなせます。
Doitsugo ga hanasemasen. Demo, orandago wa hanasemasu.
I don’t speak German, but I speak Dutch.

However, it’s more convenientto shorten it like this:

オランダ語ごなら話はなせます。
Orandago nara hanasemasu.
I (can) speak Dutch (but not German).

More Example Sentences

タコが好すきじゃないです。でも、イカは好すきです。
Tako ga suki janaidesu. Demo ika wa suki desu.
I don’t like octopus, but I like squid.

イカなら好すきです。
Ika nara suki desu.
I like squid (but not octopus).

Lサイズがありますか。
L saizu ga arimasu ka.
Do you have any size L?

XLならあります。
XL nara arimasu.
We have XL (but not L).

ハムスターを飼かっていますか。
Hamusutaa wo katte imasu ka.
Do you have a hamster?

ラットなら飼かっています。
Ratto nara katte imasu.
I have a rat (but not a hamster).

大阪おおさかに行いったことがありますか。
Oosaka ni itta koto ga arimasu ka.
Have you been to Osaka?

京都きょうとなら行いったことがあります。
Kyouto nara itta koto ga arimasu.
I’ve been to Kyoto (but not Osaka).

みさなら出来できる。
Misa nara dekiru.
You (Misa) can do it! (But not others)

五分ごふんなら話はなせます。
Go fun nara hanasemasu.
I can speak for five minutes (but not longer).

Thanks for reading until the end. Now, you should know now how to use と, とき, たら, and なら. Who would have guessed we would need three articles to learn how to say “if” and “when”? It’s a lot to learn at once, but just keep practicing, and you’ll get the hang of it.

Other people may not be able to do it, but you can! (きみなら出来る！)