Download 1 SUBJUNCTIVE V. INDICATIVE Overview The subjunctive is one of

SUBJUNCTIVE V. INDICATIVE
Overview
The subjunctive is one of the three moods in Spanish, the other two being the indicative (actions,
events, facts) and the imperative (commands). Moods reflect how the speaker feels about an
action while a tense refers to when an action takes place. The subjunctive mood is used to
express desires, doubts, the unknown, the abstract, and emotions, which is the opposite of the
indicative mood which is used to express actions, events, and states that are believed to be true
and concrete. Most of the tenses you have learned so far have been in the indicative mood;
however, the subjunctive mood includes many of the same verb tenses, but not all, in three
different time periods:
Tense
Mood
Indicative
imperfect
past perfect
preterit
Present
present
present
present perfect
present perfect
Future
simple future
simple future
future perfect
future perfect
informal future
Conditional *there are no conditional subjunctive tenses conditional
conditional perfect
Past
Subjunctive
imperfect
past perfect
General Rules for Indicative vs. Subjunctive
- In general, the Indicative mood is objective and certain.
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It is used to talk about actions, events, or states that are believed to be facts or true.
It is very typical in speech for making factual statements or describing obvious qualities
of a person or situation.
- In general, the subjunctive mood is subjective and possible (but not certain).
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It is used to talk about doubts, wishes, the abstract, emotions, and other unknown and
non-factual situations.
It is commonly used in making recommendations, giving commands, and talking about
how things make you feel.
It is also used to express opinions about another action.
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Indicative
Reason
Subjunctive
Dudo que
Victoria estudia
Victoria estudie
español.
This states an objective español.
(Victoria
fact that Victoria studies
(I doubt that
studies
Spanish.
Victoria studies
Spanish.)
Spanish.)
Es cierto que
Victoria estudia
From the viewpoint of
español.
the speaker, the
(It is certain
statement that Victoria
that Victoria
studies Spanish is an
studies
objective fact.
Spanish.)
No dudo que
Victoria estudia
The lack of doubt on the
español.
part of the speaker
(I don’t doubt allows him to present
that Victoria
this statement as an
studies
objective fact.
Spanish.)
Reason
The introduction of doubt makes it
impossible to present the statement
that Victoria studies Spanish as an
objective fact.
Es posible que
Victoria estudie
español.
From the viewpoint of the speaker,
the idea that "Victoria studies
Spanish" is not an objective fact, but
(It is possible that
a hypothetical situation which may
Victoria studies
or may not be true.
Spanish.)
Es bueno que
Victoria estudie
español.
(It is good that
Victoria studies
Spanish.)
Es bueno que expresses the
speaker’s subjective opinion about
Victoria studying Spanish.
Words or Phrases that Indicate the Subjunctive or Indicative
Because there must be some uncertainty or subjectivity to warrant the use of the subjunctive, you
will find either uncertainty or certainty in the verb in the main clause of a sentence. It is very
helpful if you can recognize the verbs and phrases in the main clause that indicate the
subjunctive and tell them apart from similar clauses that warrant the indicative.
Luckily, many of the verbs and phrases that require the subjunctive fit into the acronym
WEIRDO: Wishes, Emotions, Impersonal expressions, Recommendations, Doubt/Denial, and
Ojalá. Each of these concepts has its own article for more details.
Concept
Wishes
Emotions
Impersonal
expressions
Recommendations
Doubt and Denial
Ojalá
Related Verbs & Phrases
desear, esperar, exigir, insistir, preferir, querer, pedir, necesitar, etc.
alegrarse, enojar, sentir, encantar, lamentar, sorprender, etc.
es extraño que, es importante que, es fantástico que, etc.
recomendar, sugerir, aconsejar, ordenar, mandar, insistir, etc.
dudar, no creer, no estar seguro, no parecer, no comprender, no pensar,
no es cierto que, etc.
n/a
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And just to be fair to the indicative, we have an acronym for that too: SPOCK: Speech and
communication, Perceptions, Occurrences and events, Certainty, and Knowledge and
understanding.
Concept
Speech and
communication
Perceptions
Occurrences and events
Certainty
Knowledge and
understanding
Related Verbs
Decir, describir, gritar, indicar, mencionar, repetir, revelar, señalar,
asegurar, comentar, afirmar, aludir a, etc.
Notar, observar, oír, percibir, encontrarse, ver, etc.
Ocurrir, suceder, pasar, acontecer, etc.
es claro que, es seguro que, es cierto que, es obvio que, no es posible
que, es evidente que, etc.
Creer, saber, averiguar, leer, enterarse de, aprender, etc.
Parts of a Subjunctive Phrase
There are three main parts to a subjunctive sentence:
1. Two Different Subjects
There will be one subject in the main/independent clause, and one in the noun/dependent clause.
•
Quiero que limpies el baño. (I want you to clean the bathroom.)
2. Two Verbs: One WEIRDO and One Subjunctive
There will be one indicative verb in the main/independent clause which will indicate the need for
the Subjunctive (a WEIRDO verb - see above) and a second verb in the noun/dependent clause
which will be in the Subjunctive.
•
Quiero que tú limpies el baño. (I want you to clean the bathroom.)
However, if you find a sentence with a main clause followed by a second clause and the verb in
the main clause introduces the idea of certainty or objectivity, you will use the indicative. Only
verbs in the main clause that indicate a concept that is uncertain and subjective will require the
subjunctive.
•
Es cierto que limpias el baño. (It is true that you are cleaning the bathroom.)
3. A Relative Pronoun (Que, Quien, Como)
This pronoun links the two clauses and can translate to mean “that,” but is often not translated at
all into English.
•
Quiero que limpies el baño. (I want (that) you clean the bathroom./I want you to clean
the bathroom.)
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