⇒ The subjunctive (el subjuntivo) is one of the three moods in Spanish, the other two being the indicative and the imperative.
⇒ The subjunctive mood is used to talk about desires, doubts, wishes, conjectures, and possibilities.
⇒ The indicative mood is used to talk about facts and other statements that are believed to be true and concrete.
⇒ The imperative mood is used to give commands.
⇒ Grammatical mood reflects a speaker's attitude toward a statement. As stated above, Spanish has three moods: the subjunctive, the indicative, and the imperative.
⇒ Grammatical tense refers to when an action takes place. Spanish has three tenses: the past, the present, and the future.
⇒ The indicative mood is used to talk about things that are objective and/or certain. This includes things like facts, descriptions, and scheduled events.
⇒ The subjunctive mood is used to talk about things that are subjective and/or possible, but not certain. This includes things like doubts, wishes, recommendations, unknowns, and opinions about the likelihood of other events occurring.
⇒ Take a look at the following sets of examples and ask yourself why each one uses either the indicative or the subjunctive.
| Victoria estudia español.Victoria studies Spanish. |
| Es posible que Victoria estudie español.It is possible that Victoria studies Spanish. |
| Estoy seguro que Victoria estudia español.I'm sure that Victoria studies Spanish. |
| Dudo que Victoria estudie español.I doubt that Victoria studies Spanish. |
| Examples | Indicative or Subjunctive? | The Why |
|---|---|---|
| Victoria estudia español. | Indicative | From the speaker’s viewpoint, the idea that "Victoria studies Spanish" is an objective fact. |
| Es posible que Victoria estudie español. | Subjunctive | From the speaker’s viewpoint, the idea that "Victoria studies Spanish" is a hypothetical situation that may or may not be true. |
| Estoy seguro que Victoria estudia español. | Indicative | From the speaker’s viewpoint, there is no doubt about Victoria studying Spanish. |
| Dudo que Victoria estudie español. | Subjunctive | From the speaker’s viewpoint, there is doubt about Victoria studying Spanish. |
⇒ Did you notice the repetition of the phrase "from the speaker's viewpoint" above? This is key to understanding a very important point: "indicative" does not mean "true."
⇒ As long as a speaker feels that what they're saying is true, the indicative can be used. This does not, however, mean that what they're saying is actually true.
| Estoy seguro que los seres humanos tienen alas.I'm sure that human beings have wings. |
⇒ The above statement is not true, but the speaker believes it is, so the second verb is in the indicative.
⇒ Most subjunctive sentences will have one subject in the main clause and one in the secondary clause.
⇒ The attitude of the subject in the main clause is what triggers the use of the subjunctive in the secondary clause.
| Laura quiere que tú limpies el baño.Laura wants you to clean the bathroom. |
⇒ It is perfectly possible to use the subjunctive when both clauses refer to the same subject. For example:
| Dudo que yo pueda ir a la fiesta.I doubt I can go to the party. |
| Espero que yo lo sepa hacer.I hope I know how to do it. |
⇒ Most subjunctive sentences have two verbs: a verb in the indicative in the main clause and a verb in the subjunctive in the secondary clause.
| Laura quiere que tú limpies el baño.Laura wants you to clean the bathroom. |
⇒ Subjunctive sentences often have parts (the main indicative clause and the secondary subjunctive clause) linked by a relative pronoun (que, quien, como)
| Yo quiero que tú limpies el baño.I want you to clean the bathroom. |
⇒ Another key to grasping the differences between the subjunctive and the indicative is understanding that certain words or phrases trigger the use of each mood.
⇒ For example, words and phrases that indicate uncertainty trigger the subjunctive, while those that indicate certainty trigger the indicative.
⇒ Many of the words and phrases that trigger the subjunctive fit into the acronym WEIRDO, which stands for: Wishes, Emotions, Impersonal expressions, Recommendations, Doubt/Denial, and Ojalá.
⇒ Below you'll find a list of words and phrases that tend to trigger the subjunctive in the verbs that follow them.
| Concept | Related Verbs and Phrases |
|---|---|
| Verbs used to talk about wishes | desear, esperar, exigir, insistir, preferir, querer, pedir, necesistar |
| Verbs used to talk about emotions | alegrarse, enojarse, sentir, encantar, lamentar, sorprender |
| Impersonal expressions | es extraño que, es importante que, es fantástico que |
| Verbs used to talk about recommendations | recomendar, sugerir, aconsejar, ordenar, mandar, insistir |
| Verbs used to talk about doubt and denial | dudar, no creer, no estar seguro, no parecer, no comprender, no pensar |
| Ojalá | For this category, there's just one word - ojalá! |
| Espero que vengas a la fiesta.I hope you come to the party. |
| Me sorprende que pienses eso.I'm surprised you think that. |
⇒ Many of the words and phrases that trigger the indicative fit into the acronym SPOCK, which stands for Speech, Perceptions, Occurrences, Certainty, and Knowledge.
⇒ Below you'll find a list of words and phrases that tend to trigger the indicative in the verbs that follow them.
| Concept | Related Verbs and Phrases |
|---|---|
| Verbs used to talk about speech | decir, describir, gritar, indicar, mencionar, repetir, revelar, señalar, asegurar, comentar, afirmar, aludir a |
| Verbs used to talk about perceptions | notar, observar, oír, percibir, encontrarse, ver |
| Verbs used to talk about occurrences | ocurrir, suceder, pasar, acontecer |
| Expressions used to talk about certainty | es claro que, es seguro que, es cierto que, es obvio que, es evidente que |
| Verbs used to talk about knowledge | creer, saber, averiguar, leer, enterarse de, aprender |
| Es claro que se caen muy bien.It's clear that they get along very well. |
| Sé que te gusta mucho el café.I know you really like coffee. |