Presente de subjuntivo
Sch. Spanish 3, Profa Jenkins 1
Presente de subjuntivo
(Present Subjunctive)
Introduction
In Spanish, there are three moods within which all verb tenses are classified:
1. Indicative
The indicative expresses a statement of fact, truth, or belief. Many of the tenses
you have already learned are part of the indicative mood.
Present: Yo vivo en una casa en las afueras.
I live in a house in the suburbs.
Preterite: El mecánico arregló mi coche en el taller.
The mechanic fixed my car at the shop.
Imperfect: Yo siempre hacía quehaceres cuando vivía con mis padres.
I always did chores when I lived with my parents.
2. Imperative
The imperative is used to command someone to do something. All of the different
command forms (familiar, formal, nosotros, vosotros) are part of the imperative
mood.
Saca la basura.
Take out the trash.
Preparen la ensalada de papas.
Prepare the potato salad.
Presente de subjuntivo
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3. Subjunctive
The subjunctive is used in a variety of contexts, such as expressing feelings,
attitudes, and things that are viewed by the speaker as uncertain or hypothetical.
Espero que salgas bien en el examen.
I hope that you do well on the test.
Formation of the Present Subjunctive
To form the present subjunctive, follow the simple steps below:
1. Start with the present tense ‗yo‘ form
2. Drop the ‗o‘ from the end
3. Add the OPPOSITE verb ending
-AR verbs use endings normally associated with –ER/-IR verbs
-ER/-IR verbs use endings normally associated with –AR verbs
o The charts below show the subjunctive verb endings:
For example:
Es importante que tú leas la novela cuidadosamente.
It‘s important that you read the novel carefully.
Sara recomienda que visitemos el Museo del Prado cuando estamos en Madrid.
Sara recommends that we visit the Prado Museum when we‘re in Madrid.
-AR Verbs
Yo -e Nosotros -emos
Tú -es Vosotros -éis
Él
Ella -e
Ud
Ellos
Ellas -en
Uds
-ER/-IR Verbs
Yo -a Nosotros -amos
Tú -as Vosotros -áis
Él
Ella -a
Ud
Ellos
Ellas -an
Uds
Presente de subjuntivo
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o ¡Atención! Do you remember why you have to start with the present tense
‗yo‘ form?
Any irregularities that occur in the present tense ‗yo‘ form…
—GO verbs
Stem Changes
Spelling Changes
Etc.
…will also be included in the subjunctive forms!
For example:
Infinitive: HACER MOSTRAR CONDUCIR
Present ‗yo‘: hago muestro conduzco
Subjunctive:
A Note About Stem Changes…
As seen above, stem changes that occur in the present tense will also occur in the
subjunctive:
o –AR & -ER Verbs
Just like the present tense, -AR & -ER verbs that have a stem change will
change in all forms EXCEPT ‗nosotros‘ and ‗vosotros‘
For example:
Stem Change
inside the BOOT!
haga hagamos
hagas hagáis
haga hagan
muestre mostremos
muestres mostréis
muestre muestren
conduzca conduzcamos
conduzcas conduzcáis
conduzca conduzcan
VOLVER (o-ue)
vuelva volvamos
vuelvas volváis
vuelva vuelvan
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o –IR Verbs
Unlike –AR & -ER verbs, -IR verbs that stem change in the subjunctive will
have a stem change in all six of their forms, including ‗nosotros‘ and
‗vosotros‘. However, the stem change in the ‗nosotros‘ and ‗vosotros‘ forms
may be different than the other forms. In the ‗nosotros‘ and ‗vosotros‘
forms, the possible stem changes are: e i & o u.
For example:
Es buena idea que tú duermas por lo menos siete horas.
It‘s a good idea that you sleep at least seven hours.
Es una lástima que él no se sienta bien.
It‘s a shame that he doesn‘t feel well.
Spelling Changes
Some verbs have a spelling change in the subjunctive. This spelling change occurs in ALL
six verb forms.
For example:
Es importante que nosotros
practiquemos.
It‘s important that we
practice.
DORMIR (o-ue)
duerma durmamos
duermas durmáis
duerma duerman
SENTIR (e-ie)
sienta sintamos
sientas sintáis
sienta sientan
Verbs that end in… Spelling Change in Subjunctive
-zar -ce
-car -que
-gar -gue
PRACTICAR
practique practiquemos
practiques practiquéis
practique practiquen
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Totally Irregular Verbs
There are 6 verbs that are totally irregular in the subjunctive:
Infinitive Subjunctive Infinitive Subjunctive
Ir
vaya vayamos
vayas vayáis
vaya vayan
Dar
dé demos
des deis
dé den
Ser
sea seamos
seas seáis
sea sean
Saber
sepa sepamos
sepas sepáis
sepa sepan
Estar
esté estemos
estés estéis
esté estén
Haber*
haya hayamos
hayas hayáis
haya hayan
* The verb HABER is a presentative verb (there is/are). The basic form—haya—is the only form
used as a main verb. The remaining forms are used as helping verbs in compound tenses that you
will learn later.
Uses of the Present Subjunctive
There are many contexts that require the use of the subjunctive in Spanish
To help you learn to use the subjunctive, remember the acronym below:
Want, wish, will
Emotion
Impersonal expressions
Recommendations & advice
Doubt, disbelief, denial
Ojalá
The subjunctive is most often used in statements comprised of two clauses—a main clause
and a subordinate clause—which are connected by the conjunction ―que‖. For example:
Es bueno que tú ayudes con los quehaceres domésticos.
Each of these uses of the
subjunctive is explained in the
following pages of this packet.
Main
Clause
Connector Subordinate
Clause
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o The main clause contains an expression that triggers the use of the subjunctive
(See WEIRDO acronym)
o The subordinate clause contains the verb in the subjunctive
o Note that, in statements that use the subjunctive, the subject changes
between the main clause and the subordinate clause!
Necesito que tú vayas al supermercado.
I need for you to go to the supermarket.
Necesito ir al supermercado.
I need to go to the supermarket.
WEIRDO Explained
Now let‘s take a closer look at each of the WEIRDO categories that require the use of the
subjunctive.
The subjunctive is used when expressing what you want or wish for another person to do.
Below are some common main clauses that express want, wish, and/or will.
This statement uses the subjunctive because:
1. It expresses want/wish/will
2. It has both clauses and the connector ―que‖
3. It has a change of subject (‗yo‘ in the main clause, ‗tú‘
in the subordinate clause).
This statement does NOT use the subjunctive because:
1. It does not have both a main clause and a subordinate
clause, nor does it have a connector
2. It does not have a change of subject, therefore an
infinitive is used
ant, Wish, Will
Presente de subjuntivo
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En español… En inglés…
Querer que… To want that
Esperar que… To hope that
Desear que… To wish that
Preferir que… To prefer that
Rogar que… To beg/plead that
Necesitar que… To need that
Insistir en que… To insist that
Pedir que… To ask/request that
Prohibir que… To prohibit that
Importar que… To matter/be important that
Mandar que… To order that
Examples:
Mamá necesita que nosotros limpiemos la casa.
Mom needs for us to clean the house.
Sara prefiere que yo prepare panqueques.
Sara prefers that I prepare pancakes.
The subjunctive is also used when expressing an emotion, feeling or attitude toward
something
Below are some main clauses that commonly express emotion, attitude, and/or feeling
motion
Presente de subjuntivo
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En español… En inglés…
Alegrarse (de) que… To be happy that
Gustar que… To like that
Molestar que… To bother that
Sentir que… To regret/be sorry that
Sorprender que… To surprise that
Temer que… To fear that
Tener miedo (de) que… To be afraid that
Examples:
Siento que tu abuelo esté tan enfermo.
I‘m sorry that your grandfather is so sick.
Me sorprende que ellos se casen ya.
I‘m surprised that they‘re getting married already.
Another common context which requires the subjunctive is impersonal expressions
Impersonal expressions often convey someone‘s opinion or judgment about something,
but these expressions are phrased in an impersonal way, most often following the
pattern ―es + adjective + que‖
Below are several impersonal expressions frequently used with the subjunctive
En español… En inglés…
Es bueno que… It‘s good that
Es malo que… It‘s bad that
Es importante que… It‘s important that
mpersonal Expressions
Presente de subjuntivo
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Es mejor que… It‘s better that
Es necesario que… It‘s necessary that
Es urgente que… It‘s urgent that
Es extraño que… It‘s strange that
Es una lástima que… It‘s a shame that
Es ridículo que… It‘s ridiculous that
Es terrible que… It‘s terrible that
Es triste que… It‘s sad that
Es buena/mala idea que… It‘s a good/bad idea that
Examples:
Es extraño que haya tanto tráfico hoy.
It‘s strange that there is so much traffic today.
Es importante que conservemos los recursos naturales.
It‘s important that we conserve natural resources.
The subjunctive is also used in contexts in which you recommend or advise that someone
do something
Some common main clauses that express a recommendation or advice are:
En español… En inglés…
Aconsejar que… To advise that
Sugerir que… To suggest that
Recomendar que… To recommend that
ecommendations & Advice
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Examples:
Sugiero que pienses en este nuevo tratamiento.
I suggest that you think about this new treatment.
El camarero recomienda que pidamos el salmón.
The waiter recommends that we order the salmon.
Another common reason to use the subjunctive is when the statement expresses doubt,
disbelief, denial or uncertainty
Below are several main clauses that express doubt, disbelief and/or denial
En español… En inglés…
Dudar que… To doubt that
Negar que… To deny that
No creer que… To not believe that
No estar seguro/a (de) que… To not be sure that
No es cierto que…
No es verdad que… It‘s not true that
No es seguro que… It‘s not certain that
Es imposible que… It‘s impossible that
Es improbable que… It‘s improbable that
(No) Es posible que… It‘s (not) possible that
(No) Es probable que… It‘s (not) probable that
oubt, Disbelief, Denial
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Examples:
Dudo que aprueben la nueva ley de conservación.
I doubt that they‘ll approve the new conservation law.
Es posible que la deforestación lleve a la extinción de varias
especies de animales.
It‘s possible that deforestation will lead to the
extinction of various species of animals.
The word ―ojalá‖ is quite common in Spanish
―Ojalá‖ is actually derived from Arabic, when it was used to express the sentiment ―May
God (Allah) grant that…‖
The most common contemporary interpretation of ―ojalá‖ is ―hopefully‖, but keep in mind
that it is much stronger than simply saying ―Espero que…‖
The phrase ―Ojalá que…‖ is followed by the subjunctive
Example:
Ojalá que podamos proteger las especies en peligro de extinción.
Hopefully we can protect endangered species.
jalá
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Additional Uses of the Subjunctive
In addition to the WEIRDO categories, there are some other common situations that
require the use of the subjunctive
o Conjunctions
Conjunctions are used to connect other words/phrases
With some conjunctions, the subjunctive is used to express a situation or
action that is uncertain or hypothetical
The following conjunctions always require the subjunctive:
En español… En inglés…
A menos que Unless
Antes (de) que Before
Con tal (de) que Provided that
En caso (de) que In case
Para que So that
Sin que Without
Example:
Voy al taller para que arreglen mi carro.
I‘m going to the shop so that they may fix my
car.
Some conjunctions, however, can be used with either the subjunctive or the
indicative, depending on the context:
Use the indicative when expressing something that habitually happens
or something that happened in the past
Use the subjunctive when expressing a future action
En español… En inglés…
Cuando When
Después de que After
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En cuanto As soon as
Hasta que Until
Tan pronto como As soon as
Examples:
Siempre recogemos mucha basura cuando vamos al parque.
We always pick up a lot of trash when we go to the
park.
El problema no va a mejorar hasta que reduzcamos
el uso de los combustibles.
The problem isn‘t going to improve until we
reduce the use of fossil fuels.
o Adjective Clauses
The subjunctive is used in adjective clauses that refer to someone or
something that either does not exist or whose existence is uncertain
Examples:
No encontré ningunos zapatos que me gusten en la
zapatería.
I didn‘t find any shoes that I like in the shoe store.
Busco un banco que me dé un préstamo.
I‘m looking for a bank that will give me a loan.
In contexts in which the adjective clause refers to someone or something
that is clearly known, certain or definite, the indicative is used.
Indicative
Subjunctive
Nonexistent
Uncertain
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When NOT to Use the Subjunctive
Now that you‘ve learned a variety of contexts that require the subjunctive, let‘s review
the contexts in which you do NOT use the subjunctive
Remember…when expressing something that is believed to be true or certain, or when
making a statement of fact, you use the indicative—NOT the subjunctive
Below are some phrases that require the indicative
En español… En inglés…
No dudar que… To not doubt that
No cabe duda que…
No hay duda que… There is no doubt that
No negar que… To not deny that
Creer que…
Pensar que… To believe/think that
Estar seguro/a (de) que… To be sure that
Es seguro que… It‘s certain that
Es verdad que…
Es cierto que… It‘s true that
Es obvio que… It‘s obvious that
Examples:
Es obvio que el cambio climático es un problema grave.
It‘s obvious that climate change is a serious problem.
No cabe duda que la contaminación del agua presenta una
amenaza severa a los animales marinos.
There‘s no doubt that water pollution presents a
severe threat to marine animals.