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There are two distinct verbal modes, or moods, in Spanish: the
subjunctive and the indicative. In simple, direct speech, one uses
primarily the indicative, e.g. the present
indicative, preterite indicative,
imperfect indicative, etc. Some of these
indicative tenses have their corresponding tenses in the subjunctive
as well, such as the present subjunctive, imperfect
subjunctive, present
perfect subjunctive, etc.
Present Subjunctive -- Overview
The present subjunctive forms are what what one uses to form direct commands. Many of the uses of the present subjunctive simply turn those direct commands into indirect commands. There is nothing inherently difficult about the use of the subjunctive as long as the following principles are observed. The vast majority of the instances in which the present subjunctive is used conform to the following three basic criteria:
1. A complex sentence. There are
three basic types of sentences: a simple sentence, a compound
sentence, and a complex sentence. The subjunctive usually appears in
the subordinate clause of a complex sentence.
- A simple sentence has a subject and a verb: El habla con su amigo por teléfono.
- A compound sentence has one or more simple sentences, joined by a conjunction: Él habla con su amigo en el teléfono y su amiga prepara sus lecciones.
- A complex sentence consists of a main clause, or a
simple sentence, and a subordinate
clause. These are also called, respectively, an independent clause
and a dependent clause, the latter depending on the former
for full grammatical sense. Él espera que su amiga
prepare sus lecciones.
2. A change of subject. For the
subjunctive to occur in the dependent, or subordinate, clause of a
complex sentence there is almost always a change of subject from one
clause to the next.
- Yo quiero que tú me acompañes. (I -- you)
- Ella duda que él haya estudiado. (she -- he)
- Nosotros sentimos mucho que ustedes tengan
que quedarse. (we -- you)
3. An appropriate verb or condition. The verb in the main
clause of the complex sentence will express (a) will or obligation,
(b) doubt, uncertainty or futurity, or (c) emotion.
- Es necesario que regreses. (It is necessary that you return.)
- No es cierto que mejore el tiempo. (It is not certain that the weather will improve.)
- Siento mucho que tengas un resfriado. (I am very sorry that you have a cold.)
Present subjunctive -- Formation
Nearly all verbs in Spanish, including most irregular verbs, stem-changing verbs, and other verbs with spelling changes, form their subjunctive stem from the first person singular of the present indicative. To form the present subjunctive the -o of the first person singular of the present indicative is dropped, and the following subjunctive endings are added in its place:
-AR verbs
- -e
- -es
- -e
- -emos
- -éis
- -en
-ER verbs
- -a
- -as
- -a
- -amos
- -áis
- -an
-IR verbs
- -a
- -a
- -a
- -amos
- áis
- -a
- Examples of -ar, -er and -ir verbs
conjugated in subordinate clauses:
Hablar
- ...que yo hable
- ...que tú hables
- ...que usted hable
- ...que nosotros/as hablemos
- ...que vosotros/as habléis
- ...que ustedes hablen
Comer
- ...que yo coma
- ...que tú comas
- ...que usted coma
- ...que nostros/as comamos
- ...que vosotros/as comáis
- ...que coman
Vivir
- ...que yo viva
- ...que tú vivas
- ...que usted viva
- ...que nosotros/as vivamos
- ...que vosotros/as viváis
- ...que vivan
Several verbs -- which happen to be quite commonly used, like
ser, estar,
haber, saber,
and ir -- are irregular in
the present subjunctive. The following is a complete list of the
truly irregular verbs in the present subjunctive:
- dar --dé, des, dé, demos, deis, den
- estar -- esté, estés, esté, estemos, estéis, estén
- haber -- haya, hayas, haya, hayamos, hayáis, hayan
- ir -- vaya, vayas, vaya, vayamos, vayáis, vayan
- saber --sepa, sepas, sepa, sepamos, sepáis, sepan
- ser -- sea, seas, sea, seamos, seáis, sean
- ver -- vea, veas, vea, veamos, veáis, vean
The subjunctive is a mood, which means that it serves to express the attitude or impression of the speaker. Frequently, statements in the subjunctive indicate (1) will and obligation, (2) doubt, uncertainty, and futurity, and (3) emotion.
Will, doubt, and emotion. Many
introductory statements, expressions of doubt, emotion, or
obligation, precede verbs in the subjunctive. The list of verbs and
impersonal expressions usually followed by the subjunctive is quite
long, and includes (but is not limited to) the following:
Will and obligation
- Querer
- Pedir
- Exigir
- Preferir
- Recomendar
- Prohibir
- Es importante
- Es necesario
- Es urgente
Doubt and uncertainty
- Dudar
- Negar
- Es posible
- Es probable
- No es seguro
- No es cierto
- Es dudoso
- No es verdad
- No creer
Emotion
- Sentir
- Estar triste
- Alegrarse
- Temer
- Tener miedo
- Estar contento(a)
- Sorprenderse
- Esperar
- Es una lástima
Will and obligation
- Ella quiere que paguemos la cuenta. (She wants us to pay the bill.)
- Te recomiendo que hables con un médico. (I recommend you talk to a doctor.)
- Les prohibo que entren.* (I won't allow
you to enter.)
At times a sentence that begins with Que... followed by the subjunctive denotes an implied command, subordinate to an unexpressed main clause.
- Que lo haga Jorge. (Have Jorge do it. Short, perhaps, for "Quiero que lo haga Jorge " or "Espero que lo haga Jorge.")
Doubt and uncertainty
- Dudo que hayan servido el vino. (I doubt that they've served the wine.)
- Es posible que no llueva hoy. (It's possible that it won't rain today.)
- No creo que lleguen mañana. (I
don't believe they will arrive tomorrow.)
But:
- Creo que llegan mañana. (I believe
they're coming tomorrow.)
The words tal vez or quizá(s), meaning "perhaps," imply uncertainty and usually precede the subjunctive.
- Tal vez haya un incendio. (Perhaps there's a fire.)
- Quizás ganemos la lotería algún día. (Maybe we'll win the lottery one day.)
Emotion
- Siento mucho que tengas que pagar la multa. (I am very sorry you have to pay the fine.)
- Tienen miedo de que el presidente vote a favor. (They fear that the president will vote in favor.)
- Esperamos que no haga mal tiempo.** (We
hope there won't be bad weather.)
The word ojalá (que), which derives from the Arabic word that means Allah willing, expresses strong emotion and also introduces the subjunctive.
- Ojalá que salgamos bien en el examen.
- Ojalá no cueste demasiado.
*Note that there is a class of verbs that often makes use of the infinitive instead of the subjunctive in constructions such as these. Causative verbs like hacer, mandar, dejar, prohibir, and permitir allow, or even prefer, an alternative syntax such as those expressed in parentheses: Me hacen que toque la flauta (Me hacen tocar la flauta); Les dejo que vayan a la playa (Les dejo ir a la playa); etc.
**Note also that if there is no change of subject from one clause to the next an infinitive construction is generally preferred:
- Queremos ver la película. (We want to see the movie.)
- Es posible tener mala suerte. (It's possible to have bad luck.)
- Esperamos comprarlo a buen precio. (We hope to buy it at a good price.)
Adjective clauses and the subjunctive
In all of the cases above the subjunctive occurs in a dependent
clause, which in these cases happen to be noun clauses. An
adjective clause can also follow an independent clause. If the
antecedent (that to which the clause refers) is either negative or
indefinite, the verb in the dependent clause will be in the
subjunctive. For instance:
- Busco un apartamento que tenga dos alcobas. (Here the subjunctive is used because the exact identity of the house is uncertain. Compare this to Tengo un apartamento que tiene dos alcobas. In this case there is nothing uncertain about the apartment's identity.)
- ¿Conoces a alguien que sepa hablar ruso? (Here the subjunctive is used because the exact the existence of the person who might speak Russian is uncertain. Compare this to Sí, conozco a alguien que sabe hablar ruso. In this case there is nothing uncertain about the person's existence.)
- No hay nada aquí que sea interesante. (Here the subjunctive is used because the antecedent is negative. Compare this to Hay algo aquí que es interesante. Again, in this declarative statement the reference is to something that exists.)
As a part of speech, the adverb answers the questions how, when, or where. A dependent clause can also function as an adverb when it is introduced by an appropriate conjunction.
When certain conjunctions introduce a dependent clause the
subjunctive always follows. By their very nature these
conjunctions refer to something uncertain, contingent, or in the
future. These conjunctions are a menos que, antes (de) que, con
tal (de) que, en caso de que, para que, and sin que.
- Vamos al cine a menos que prefieras ir a cenar. (...unless you prefer clearly places this clause in the category of uncertain)
- En caso de que llame a la puerta, dígale que no estoy en casa. (...in case you knock projects the listener to the future)
- Salgo sin que me vean. (...without their seeing refers to something that hasn't happened)
Certain other conjunctions may introduce the subjunctive as
well, but only if they express doubt, uncertainty, or futurity. Some
examples are aunque, cuando, en cuanto, tan pronto como, de modo
que, de manera que, hasta que, después (de) que, etc.
- Hablo mi amigo cuando venga mañana. (The dependent clause remains in the future relative to the main clause. Therefore, the subjunctive follows.)
- Vamos a esquiar aunque no nieve. (Here the
subjunctive is used to express that the speaker intends to go
skiing, even though it doesn't snow sometime in the future.)
But...
- Siempre hablo con mi amigo cuando viene a verme. (The indicative is used here because it refers primarily to a habitual, repeated past action.
- Vamos a tomar el sol aunque hace frío. (Here the indicative is used to express that although it is cold, right now, the speaker wants to spend some time outside.)
Certain expressions find the subjunctive in the main clause:
- ¡Viva el Rey! (Long live the king!)
- Dios le bendiga. (May God bless you.)
Related topics:
Imperfect subjunctive
Compound verbs
Verbs
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