ものなら ②If you were to do, If you try to, If … happens, Should there be

ものなら is a combination of the noun もの ‘thing’, and the hypothetical form of the auxiliary verb だ, なら ‘if’. Common translations include ‘If you were to (A), (B)’, of ‘if (A) happens, (B)’. In this particular use of ものなら, (A) will be a verb in its volitional form, and (B) will be some sort of negative result that would come about from that. Let’s have a look at a few examples.

Keeping in mind that the volitional form can mean to approach an action with reckless abandon, it can be thought of as being similar to the English ‘to go and do (A)’, where the ‘to go and’ just indicates proceeding ahead without carefully considering the outcome.

Fun Fact

なら is often translated as ‘if’ in many textbooks and online resources, but knowing that it is just a conjugation of だ ‘is’, the more literal translation is ‘were’. This ‘were’ behaves exactly the same way in English in hypothetical situations, so may potentially be better if you would like to avoid confusion between other ‘if’ grammar patterns like ば, と, and たら. An example of this can be seen in sentences like ‘were it to rain tomorrow, then I would need an umbrella’. Because of this, it is recommended to memorize なら purely as ‘were’, rather than the ‘if’ interpretation that is usually attached to it.