Present Subjunctive

Present Subjunctive

Indicative Tense vs. Subjunctive Mood• all of the tenses you have learned in your Spanish

career are Indicative Tenses (Present, Preterite, Imperfect, Perfect tenses, Future, Conditional).

• Indicative tenses express factual, real or definite actions.

• Subjunctive Mood expresses the speaker’s attitude towards actions viewed as uncertain or hypothetical

Present Subjunctive

Formation of Regular Forms• start with the yo form of the present indicative• Add the “opposite” ending hablar comer vivirhable coma vivahables comas vivashable coma vivahablemos comamos vivamoshablen coman vivan

Present Subjunctive

• verbs that are irregular in the Present Indicative yo form maintain that irregularity throughout all of the conjugations

conocer decir oír escoger caberconozca diga oiga escoja quepaconozcas digas oigas escojas quepasconozca diga oiga escoja quepaconozcamos digamos oigamos escojamos quepamosconozcan digan oigan escojan quepan

Present Subjunctive

Stem-changing verbs• -AR and –ER verbs that stem change in the

Present Indicative will have the same stem change in the Present Subjunctive.

• Remember there is NO stem change in the nosotros/as forms.

Present Subjunctive

Stem-changing verbs

pensar *jugar resolverpiense juegue resuelvapienses juegues resuelvaspiense juegue resuelvapensemos juguemos resolvamospiensen jueguen resuelvan

Present Subjunctive

Stem-changing verbs

• -IR verbs that stem change in the Present Indicative also stem change in the Present Subjunctive. The stem change DOES occur in the nosotros/as form (e:i, o:u).

Present Subjunctive

pedir preferir dormir(e:i) (e:ie) (o:ue)pida prefiera duermapidas prefieras duermaspida prefiera duermapidamos prefiramos durmamospidan prefieran duerman

Present Subjunctive

Spelling Change Verbs• verbs that end in –car, -gar, and –zar have the

following spelling changes to maintain preservation of sound:

-car -gar -zarc→qu g→gu z→csacar pagar almorzar

yo saque pague almuerce

Present Subjunctive

• There are 6 verbs that are irregular in the Present Subjunctive

dar estar irdé esté vayades estés vayasdé esté vayademos estemos vayamosden estén vayan

Present Subjunctive

haber saber serhaya sepa seahayas sepas seashaya sepa seahayamos sepamos seamoshayan sepan sean

Present Subjunctive

When to use the Present Subjunctive

Uncertainty

Wish, want, will

Emotions

Impersonal expressions

Recommendation, request

Doubt

Ojalá que

Present Subjunctive

• Present Subjunctive is used in the Subordinate (Dependent) clause when UWEIRDO triggers exist in the Main (Independent) clause

• The main (independent) clause has a subject and a verb and can stand alone as a complete sentence.

• The subordinate (dependent) clause, although it has a subject and a verb, cannot stand alone as a sentence; it is only a part of a sentence.

• The main and subordinate clauses are often connected by the word que or an adverbial conjunction

Present Subjunctive

Types of Subordinate (dependent) clauses)

• adjective clause: a subordinate clause that modifies a noun or pronoun by telling what kind or which one

• adverbial clause: a subordinate clause that modifies a verb, adjective, adverb or verbal clause. It expresses where, when, how, to what extent, under what condition or why.

• noun clause: a subordinate clause that acts like a noun

Present Subjunctive

Indicative Tense vs. Subjunctive Mood• There are 3 moods:

Indicative, Imperative and Subjunctive• Indicative represents factual statements• Imperative is the command form• Subjunctive represents doubt, suggestion,

uncertainty, possibility, hypothetical events

Present Subjunctive

Examples:Los estudiantes quieren que la maestra no dé mucha tarea.

(main clause w/triggers) (conjunction) (subordinate clause that describes what the students want)

Which UWEIRDO rule applies?

Did you notice the change of subject between the main and dependent clauses?

Present Subjunctive

Example:

El alumno estudia cuando llegue a la casa.(main clause) (conjunction) (subordinate clause expressing doubt)

Which UWEIRDO applies?

Did you notice the change of subject between the main and dependent clauses?

Present Subjunctive

The Subjunctive After Impersonal Expressions

• An impersonal expression does not have a person as its subject. The subject is “it” and makes a generalized statement.

Present Subjunctive

Common Impersonal Expressions that ALWAYS trigger use of the Subjunctive

Es bueno que... It’s good that...Es importante que... It’s important that...

Es imposible que... It’s impossible that...

Es malo que... It’s bad that...

Es mejor que... It’s better that...

Es necesario que... It’s necessary that...

Es una lástima que... It’s a shame that...

Es urgente que... It’s urgent that...

Present Subjunctive

• Impersonal expressions that indicate fact, truth or certainty trigger use of the indicative tense in the subordinate clause BUT if the expressions are made negative (i.e. add NO before the verb), then the expression indicates doubt/uncertainty and triggers the subjunctive.

Es cierto que... It is certain that...Es evidente que... It is evident that...

Es seguro que... It is sure that...

Es verdad que... It is true that...

No es cierto... It is not true that...

No es evidente que... It is not evident that...

No es seguro que... It is not sure that...

No es verdad que... It is not true that...