⇒ The subjunctive (el subjuntivo) is one of three moods in Spanish, and it is often used to talk about emotions.
⇒ Many of the verbs and phrases that require the subjunctive fit into the acronym WEIRDO: Wishes, Emotions, Impersonal expressions, Recommendations, Doubt/Denial, and Ojalá
⇒ In these notes, we're going to take a look at wishes and desires.
⇒ Wishing, wanting, demanding, desiring, expecting, ordering, and preferring all fall into the category of wishes.
⇒ Additionally, mentioning the nonexistence or indefiniteness of something that is desired falls into this category.
⇒ The following verbs are commonly used to express a wish or desire and, when used as the verb in the main clause of a sentence, will indicate that the following verb in the dependent clause will be in the subjunctive.
| Spanish | English | Spanish | English |
|---|---|---|---|
| agradecer | to be grateful | insistir | to insist |
| no tener | to not have | buscar | to look for |
| mandar | to order | pedir | to request |
| desear | to wish | necesitar | to need |
| preferir | to prefer | esperar | to hope |
| no encontrar | to not find | querer | to want |
| exigir | to demand | no haber | there is/are not |
⇒ Check out these examples. Note that they all use one of the above wishing verbs in conjunction with the word que:
| Solo te pido que mantengas la calma.I just ask that you retain your composure. |
| Esperamos que cocines bien.We hope that you cook well. |
| El rey desea que cenes con él.The king wishes you to dine with him. |
| Quiero salir con un hombre que me compre flores.I want to date a guy who buys me flowers. |
⇒ You can find more on the differences between the subjunctive and the indicative here!