Plans, wishes & possibilities
Possibilities, purposes & opinions
Other subjunctive triggers
Express uncertainty, evaluation, purpose, or a sought-but-unidentified thing.
Endings refresher
Present subjunctive
For many verbs, start with the present yo form, remove -o, and add the opposite-vowel ending.
| Person | -ar ending | -er / -ir ending |
|---|---|---|
| yo | -e | -a |
| tú | -es | -as |
| él / ella / usted | -e | -a |
| nosotros / nosotras | -emos | -amos |
| vosotros / vosotras | -éis | -áis |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | -en | -an |
hacer → hago → hag- + -a → yo haga
- Some -ir verbs also change the stem in nosotros and vosotros: pedir → pidamos / pidáis; dormir → durmamos / durmáis.
- Spelling may change to preserve the sound: buscar → busque, llegar → llegue, empezar → empiece (also e → ie).
- Common exceptions include sea, vaya, haya, sepa, dé and esté.
- These charts use tú. Vosotros / vosotras is mainly used in Spain; ustedes uses the final row. Vos forms vary by region.
The pattern
- Common patterns: es posible que, es importante que, para que + subjunctive.
- Present forms: hable, coma, viva; irregulars include sea, vaya, tenga.
Es importante que descanses.
It is important that you rest.
Why it works: Es importante que expresses an evaluation, so descanses takes the subjunctive.
Notice the difference
Sé que descansas bien.
I know that you rest well.
Why it works: Sé que presents the rest as a known fact, so descansas is indicative.
One thing to watch for
Que alone does not choose the mood: es posible que venga expresses possibility, while sé que viene presents a known fact.