Plans, wishes & possibilities
If things were different
Imperfect subjunctive: hypothetical si clauses
Imagine an unlikely or unreal condition and its result.
Endings refresher
Imperfect subjunctive
Start with the ellos preterite form, remove -ron, and choose the -ra or -se endings.
| Person | -ra option | -se option |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -ra | -se |
| tú | -ras | -ses |
| él / ella / usted | -ra | -se |
| nosotros / nosotras | -ramos | -semos |
| vosotros / vosotras | -rais | -seis |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | -ran | -sen |
hacer → hicieron → hicie- + -ra → yo hiciera
- Both series are valid: hiciera or hiciese. Nosotros adds an accent to the stem: hiciéramos or hiciésemos.
- Quisiera is a form of querer used in a common polite request; it is not a conditional ending.
- These charts use tú. Vosotros / vosotras is mainly used in Spain; ustedes uses the final row. Vos forms vary by region.
Conditional
Add these endings to the whole infinitive. Special stems match the simple future.
| Person | All verb endings |
|---|---|
| yo | -ía |
| tú | -ías |
| él / ella / usted | -ía |
| nosotros / nosotras | -íamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | -íais |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | -ían |
hacer uses har- + -ía → yo haría
- For a regular verb: hablar + -ía → hablaría. Compare hacer: hacía is imperfect; haría is conditional. The stem, not just the ending, matters.
- These charts use tú. Vosotros / vosotras is mainly used in Spain; ustedes uses the final row. Vos forms vary by region.
The pattern
- Forms below follow: yo, tú, él/ella/usted, nosotros, vosotros, ellos/ustedes. Vosotros is mainly used in Spain; ustedes uses the final form.
- Si + imperfect subjunctive; result usually conditional.
- From the ellos preterite, remove -ron and add -ra, -ras, -ra, -ramos, -rais, -ran. Nosotros adds a written accent: tuviéramos. The -se series is also valid.
Si tuviera tiempo, aprendería a tocar el piano.
If I had time, I would learn to play the piano.
Why it works: Tuviera presents an imagined condition. Aprendería gives its possible result. Tocar stays an infinitive after aprender a.
Notice the difference
Si tengo tiempo, aprenderé a tocar el piano.
If I have time, I will learn to play the piano.
Why it works: A condition treated as open or possible commonly uses present indicative after si. Si alone does not require the subjunctive.
One thing to watch for
Use si tuviera, not si tendría, for this hypothetical condition.