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When Do You Use the Subjunctive? |
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Question of the Week
After reading your article on the use of it, I was wondering
when do you use the present perfect form as opposed to the subjunctive form?
I don't quite understand. If you could shed some light on this I would be very
grateful.
Hello, could you give me some more insight on the use of the subjunctive? I.e., when to use it? It's the one area in my studies that I find the most difficult. Could you shed some light on this difficult area of the
Spanish language?
You're right that it does take a while to learn when to use the subjunctive, and that's probably because the subjunctive barely exists as a distinct verb mood in English. About the only time we use it in English is in certain contrary-to-fact sentences, such as those beginning with "If I were...."
It may be some consolation that even native Spanish speakers aren't completely consistent in how they use the subjunctive. But they do use it, and use it a lot. While you could probably get by to learn English without even knowing what the subjunctive is, you couldn't get away with that in Spanish.
I won't go into a lot of detail here about the differences between the indicative (or "normal") and subjunctive moods, because I covered that fairly thoroughly in the first lesson in a three-part series on the subjunctive.
But I will summarize the basic rule: The indicative mood is used to straightforwardly state facts or perceived facts. But, generally speaking, statements in the subjunctive usually don't stand on their own. They are usually used in a dependent clause beginning with que (usually translated as "that" or "which"), a clause that is the basis of a reaction or an expression of something that is desired or doubted. I'll give a few examples; there are others in the lesson.
| Indicative |
Subjunctive |
| Mi hijo vuela a Nueva York. (My son is flying to New York.) This is in the indicative mood because it states a fact believed to be true. |
Quiero que mi hijo vuele a Nueva York. (I want my son to fly to New York.) The son's flying to New York is a desire, not a statement of reality, so the subjunctive is used. |
| Es cierto que estudia mucho. (It is certain he studies a lot.) The indicative is used because the statement about studying is believed to be true. |
Es posible que estudie mucho. (It is possible he studies a lot.) The subjunctive is used because there is some doubt about whether the statement is true. |
| Ha salido. (She has left.) This is a direct statement of fact, so the indicative is used. |
Dudo que haya salido. (I doubt she has left.) Her leaving is not a part of reality or perceived reality, so the subjunctive is used. |
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