Comparative Grammar 4.5. Present Subjunctive Tense in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, & French

In this comparative grammar lesson of Romance languages, we study the present subjunctive tense in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, & French. All the tenses we have encountered so far were in the indicative mood. The indicative mood is what we use to express facts. This is the mood we encounter often. There are five moods in total in Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and French: infinitive, indicative, subjunctive, imperative, and conditional. The subjunctive mood is used to express opinion, possibility, and feelings, such as fear, doubt, hope, desire, etc. Generally speaking, the indicative describes facts, whereas the subjunctive describes non-facts.

Table of Contents

• Forming the Conjugation Stem
• Conjugation of Regular & Irregular Verbs
  • In Spanish
  • In Portuguese
  • In Italian
  • In French
• Uses of the Subjunctive
• Expressing Opinions
  • Impersonal Opinions
  • Personal Opinions
• Expressing Possibilities
• Expressing Desires, Wishes, Feelings, and Requests
• Level IV – Intermediate

Forming the Conjugation Stem

In Spanish, Portuguese, and Italian, we begin from the first-person singular in the present indicative, and we extract the stem by dropping the last “-o.”

SP	“yo hablo” > “habl-”	“yo como” > “com-”	“yo vivo” > “viv-”
PT	“eu falo” > “fal-”	“eu como” > “com-”	“eu parto” > “part-”
IT	“io parlo” > “parl-”	“io vendo” > “vend-”	“io parto” > “part-”

In French, to conjugate verbs in the present subjunctive, we begin from the third-person plural in the present indicative, that is, the “ils/ells” form, and we extract the stem from these verbs by dropping the last “-ent.”

FR

“ils parlent” > “parl-”

“ils finissent” > “finiss-”

“ils vendent” > “vend-”

Conjugation of Regular & Irregular Verbs

Then, we add the endings shown in the following tables:

In Spanish

	-ar ending hablar	-er ending comer	-ir ending vivir
yo	hable	coma	viva
tú	hables	comas	vivas
él/ella/usted	hable	coma	viva
nosotros/-as	hablemos	comamos	vivamos
vosotros/-as	habléis	comáis	viváis
ellos/ellas/ustedes	hablen	coman	vivan

We use the stem from the first-person “yo” form in the present indicative by removing the final “-o.” This is especially important with verbs that are irregular in the first-person “yo” form in the present indicative. For example, use the stem from “yo tengo” to use the verb “tener” in the present subjunctive. Below are some examples:

	tener teng-	querer quier-	jugar jueg-	dormir duerm-	conocer conozc-
yo	tenga	quiera	juegue	duerma	conozca
tú	tengas	quieras	juegues	duermas	conozcas
él/ella/usted	tenga	quiera	juegue	duerma	conozca
nosotros/-as	tengamos	queramos	juguemos	durmamos	conozcamos
vosotros/-as	tengáis	queráis	juguéis	durmáis	conozcáis
ellos/ellas/ustedes	tengan	quieran	jueguen	duerman	conozcan

Notice that, in these examples, the verbs “querer,” “jugar,” and “dormir” change the conjugation stem in the “nosotros/-as” and “vosotros/-as” forms.

Because we start the conjugation from the stem of the “yo” form of the present indicative, the present subjunctive carries over the same stem change: “e” to “i,” “e” to “ie,” “o” to “ue,” “u” to “ue,” and “i” to “ie.” To form the present subjunctive, the “nosotros/-as” and “vosotros/-as” forms use the stem after removing these changes. Sometimes a slight change is applied, such as using the stem “durm-” instead of “dorm-” with the verb “dormir.”

The following verbs are irregular in the present subjunctive:

	ir	ser	estar	saber	dar	haber
yo	vaya	sea	esté	sepa	dé	haya
tú	vayas	seas	estés	sepas	des	hayas
él/ella/usted	vaya	sea	esté	sepa	dé	haya
nosotros/-as	vayamos	seamos	estemos	sepamos	demos	hayamos
vosotros/-as	vayáis	seáis	estéis	sepáis	deis	hayáis
ellos/ellas/ustedes	vayan	sean	estén	sepan	den	hayan

In Portuguese

	-ar ending falar (to speak)	-er ending comer (to eat)	-ir ending partir (to leave)
eu	fale	coma	parta
ele/ela/você	fale	coma	parta
nós	falemos	comamos	partamos
eles/elas/vocês	falem	comam	partam

We use the stem from the first-person “eu” form in the present indicative, not the stem from the infinitive. For example, use the stem from “eu tenho” to use the verb “ter” in the present subjunctive, i.e., “tenh-.” Below are some examples:

	ter (to have) tenh-	fazer (to do) faç-	poder (can) poss-	ver (to see) vej-
eu	tenha	faça	possa	veja
ele/ela/você	tenha	faça	possa	veja
nós	tenhamos	façamos	possamos	vejamos
eles/elas/vocês	tenham	façam	possam	vejam

Some verbs in the present subjunctive undergo minor spelling changes like those encountered in the present indicative to maintain the proper pronunciation, for example:

	eu	ele/ela/você	nós	eles/elas/vocês
pagar to pay	pague	pague	paguemos	paguem
ficar to stay	fique	fique	fiquemos	fiquem
caçar to hunt	cace	cace	cacemos	cacem

The following verbs have completely irregular stems and must be memorized:

	eu	ele/ela/você	nós	eles/elas/vocês
estar to be	esteja	esteja	estejamos	estejam
dar to give	dê	dê	dêmos	dêem
ser to be	seja	seja	sejamos	sejam
saber to know	saiba	saiba	saibamos	saibam
querer to want	queira	queira	queiramos	queiram
haver to have	haja	haja	hajamos	hajam
ir to go	vá	vá	vamos	vão

In Italian

	-are ending parlare (to speak)	-ere ending endere (to sell)	-ire ending (Type I) partire (to leave)	-ire ending (Type II) finire (to finish)
io	parli	venda	parta	finisca
tu	parli	venda	parta	finisca
lui/lei	parli	venda	parta	finisca
noi	parliamo	vendiamo	partiamo	finiamo
voi	parliate	vendiate	partiate	finiate
loro	parlino	vendano	partano	finiscano

We use the stem from the first-person “io” form in the present indicative by removing the final “-o.”

From the examples in the table, notice that:

1. The “noi” and “voi” forms are conjugated differently. The “noi” form is the same as the indicative, and the “voi” form has “-iate” ending regardless of the verb group.
2. The forms “io,” “tu,” and “lui/lei” have identical conjugation. This makes them, unlike in the indicative mood, indistinguishable if the subject is omitted. Thus, we often include the subject if one of these three forms is used.
3. The “noi” form of regular verbs has identical conjugation in both the indicative and subjunctive moods.
4. The “voi” form has the same conjugation ending in all verb groups in the present subjunctive.
5. All verbs with “-ere” and “-ire” endings have the same conjugation patterns in the present subjunctive.

Again, remember to use the stem from the first-person “io” form in the present indicative, not the stem from the infinitive. For example, the stem from “io bevo” is used for the verb “bere” (to drink) in the present subjunctive. Here are some examples:

	bere bev-	dire dic-	potere poss-	uscire esc-	volere vogli-
io	beva	dica	possa	esca	voglia
tu	beva	dica	possa	esca	voglia
lui/lei	beva	dica	possa	esca	voglia
noi	beviamo	diciamo	possiamo	usciamo	vogliamo
voi	beviate	diciate	possiate	usciate	vogliate
loro	bevano	dicano	possano	escano	vogliano

There are only few irregular verbs that do not follow the aforementioned conjugation patterns. These include the following:

• Verbs with “-are” ending that follow the conjugation pattern of “-ere” and “-ire” verbs. There are two common verbs in this group: “andare” (to go) and “fare” (to do or to make). The “noi” form is the same as the indicative. The “voi” form of “andare” is irregular and uses the stem from the infinitive.

	andare vad-	fare facci-
io	vada	faccia
tu	vada	faccia
lui/lei	vada	faccia
noi	andiamo	facciamo
voi	andiate	facciate
loro	vadano	facciano

• Verbs that use the stem from the “noi” form instead of the “io” form, by dropping the last “-amo.” There are a few common verbs in this category. The “noi” form is the same as the indicative, and the “voi” form drops one “i” to avoid the double “i” sound.

	avere abbi-	dare di-	essere si-	sapere sappi-	stare sti-
io	abbia	dia	sia	sappia	stia
tu	abbia	dia	sia	sappia	stia
lui/lei	abbia	dia	sia	sappia	stia
noi	abbiamo	diamo	siamo	sappiamo	stiamo
voi	abbiate	diate	siate	sappiate	stiate
loro	abbiano	diano	siano	sappiano	stiano

• Contracted infinitive verbs with “-rre” endings are all conjugated like “-ere” and “-ire” verbs. The “noi” form is the same as the indicative, and the “voi” form uses the stem from the infinitive with the “-iate” ending.

	trarre (to pull) tragg–	porre (to put) pong–	tradurre (to translate) traduc–
io	tragga	ponga	traduca
tu	tragga	ponga	traduca
lui/lei	tragga	ponga	traduca
noi	traiamo	poniamo	traduciamo
voi	traiate	poniate	traduciate
loro	traggano	pongano	traducano

• Finally, the same orthographic changes applied to verbs ending in “-care,” “-gare,” “-ciare,” “-giare,” and “-gliare” in the present indicative tense are applied here to maintain the proper pronunciation.

In French

	parler (to speak) ils parlent	finir (to finish) ils finissent	vendre (to sell) ils vendent
je	parle	finisse	vende
tu	parles	finisses	vendes
il/elle/on	parle	finisse	vende
nous	parlions	finissions	vendions
vous	parliez	finissiez	vendiez
ils/elles	parlent	finissent	vendent

We use the stem from the third-person plural “ils/elles” form in the present indicative by removing the final “-ent.”

There are some irregular verbs that do not follow the above conjugation patterns. These include the following:

• The verbs “être” (to be) and “avoir” (to have) are irregular and must be memorized.

	être	avoir
je	sois	aie
tu	sois	aies
il/elle/on	soit	ait
nous	soyons	ayons
vous	soyez	ayez
ils/elles	soient	aient

• In some verbs, the “nous” and “vous” forms are conjugated differently. The stem is formed from the first-person plural in the present indicative, that is, the “nous” form, by dropping the suffix “-ons.”  Here are some examples:

	je	tu	il/elle	nous	vous	ils/elles
appeler to call	appelle	appelles	appelle	appelions	appeliez	appellent
acheter to buy	achète	achètes	achète	achetions	achetiez	achètent
boir to drink	boive	boives	boive	buvions	buviez	boivent
croire to believe	croie	croies	croie	croyions	croyiez	croient
jeter to throw	jette	jettes	jette	jetions	jetiez	jettent
mourir to die	meure	meures	meure	mourions	mouriez	meurent
préférer to prefer	préfère	préfères	préfère	préférions	préfériez	préfèrent
prendre to take	prenne	prennes	prenne	prenions	preniez	prennent
recevoir to receive	reçoive	reçoives	reçoive	recevions	receviez	reçoivent
tenir to hold	tienne	tiennes	tienne	tenions	teniez	tiennent
venir to come	vienne	viennes	vienne	venions	veniez	viennent
voir to see	voie	voies	voie	voyions	voyiez	voient

• Some verbs have irregular stems but regular endings. The most common ones are:

	je	tu	il/elle	nous	vous	ils/elles
aller to go	aille	ailles	aille	allions	alliez	aillent
faire to do	fasse	fasses	fasse	fassions	fassiez	fassent
pouvoir to rain	puisse	puisses	puisse	puissions	puissiez	puissent
savoir to know	sache	saches	sache	sachions	sachiez	sachent
valoir to be worth	vaille	vailles	vaille	valions	valiez	vaillent
vouloir to want	veuille	veuilles	veuille	voulions	vouliez	veuillent

In addition, the verb “falloir” (to be necessary) is impersonal and has only a third-person singular form, which is irregular in the subjunctive, i.e., “il faille” (it is necessary).

Uses of the Subjunctive

The subjunctive is usually used in subordinate clauses that use the conjunction “that,” where the main clause expresses opinions and feelings such as fear, doubt, desire, etc.

	Examples
Impersonal opinion	EN: It is important that you eat well. SP: Es importante que tú comas bien. PT: É importante que você coma bem. IT: È importante che tu mangi bene. FR: Il est important que vous mangiez bien.
Happiness	EN: I’m glad they are well. SP: Me alegro de que estén bien. PT: Me alegro que estejam bem. IT: Sono contento che stiano bene. FR: Je suis content qu’ils aillent bien.
Doubt	EN: I doubt that it is sunny today. SP: Dudo que esté soleado hoy. PT: Duvido que esteja ensolarado hoje. IT: Dubito che oggi ci sia il sole. FR: Je doute qu’il y ait du soleil aujourd’hui.
Desire	EN: I want him to study well. SP: Quiero que estudie bien. PT: Quero que ele estude bem. IT: Voglio che lui studi bene. FR: Je veux qu’il étudie bien.

Expressing Opinions

Knowing when to use the indicative mood and when to use the subjunctive mood when expressing an opinion can be a little tricky. Nevertheless, these are the main guidelines:

Impersonal Opinions

For impersonal opinions, such as “it is important that …,” “it is good that …,” and “it is bad that …,” we generally use the subjunctive mood, for example:

SP	Es importante que tú visites a tu familia.	It is important that you visit your family.
PT	É importante que você visite sua família.
IT	È importante che tu visiti la tua famiglia.
FR	Il est important que vous visitiez à votre famille.
SP	Es bueno que tú estés aquí hoy.	It is good that you are here today.
PT	É bom que você esteja aqui hoje.
IT	È bello che tu sia qui oggi.
FR	C’est bien que tu sois ici aujourd’hui.

However, if the impersonal statement expresses some sense of certainty, such as “it is true that …” or “it is obvious that …,” the indicative mood is used, for example:

SP	Está claro que ellos pueden ganar este partido.	It is clear that they can win this match.
PT	É claro que eles podem vencer esta partida.
IT	È chiaro che possono vincere questa partita.
FR	Il est clair qu’ils peuvent gagner ce match.
SP	Es verdad que quiero salir hoy.	It is true that I want to go out today.
PT	É verdade que quero sair hoje.
IT	È vero che voglio uscire oggi.
FR	C’est vrai que je veux sortir aujourd’hui.

Personal Opinions

In Spanish, Portuguese, and French, if the main clause expresses an opinion in the negative, the subordinate clause is in the subjunctive mood, for example:

SP	No pienso que esta casa sea muy grande.	I don’t think that this house is too big.
PT	Não acho que esta casa seja muito grande.
FR	Je ne pense pas que cette maison soit trop grande.
SP	No creo que haya gente viviendo allí.	I don’t believe that there are people living there.
PT	Não creio que haja pessoas morando lá.
FR	Je ne crois pas qu’il y ait des gens qui vivent là-bas.

If the main clause is in the affirmative, the subordinate clause must be in the indicative, not in the subjunctive mood, for example:

SP	Pienso que esta casa es muy grande.	I think that this house is too big.
PT	Eu acho que esta casa é muito grande.
FR	Je pense que cette maison est trop grande.
SP	Creo que hay gente viviendo allí.	I believe that there are people living there.
PT	Creio que há pessoas morando lá.
FR	Je crois qu’il y a des gens qui vivent là-bas.

In Italian, if the main clause expresses an opinion that is not asserted as a fact, the subordinate clause is in the subjunctive mood, whether the main clause is in the affirmative or the negative, for example:

Penso che questa casa sia molto grande.	I think that this house is too big.
Non penso che questa casa sia molto grande.	I don’t think that this house is too big.
Credo che ci siano persone che vivono lì.	I believe that there are people living there.
Non credo che ci siano persone che vivono lì.	I don’t believe that there are people living there.

If the main clause indicates certainty or the assertion of a fact, the subordinate clause must be in the indicative, not in the subjunctive mood, for example:

Sono sicuro che questa casa è troppo grande.	I am sure that this house is too big.
Sa che ci sono persone che vivono lì.	He knows that there are people living there.

Expressing Possibilities

Most expressions that express the possibility or probability of something being one way or the other use the subjunctive mood. For example:

SP	Es posible que mañana esté nublado.	It is possible that it is cloudy tomorrow.
PT	É possível que amanhã esteja nublado.
IT	È possibile che domani sia nuvolo.
FR	Il est possible que ce soit nuageux à l’extérieur.
SP	Puede ser que Marco esté atrapado en el tráfico.	It could be that Marco is stuck in traffic.
PT	Pode ser que Marco esteja preso no trânsito.
IT	Può darsi che Marco sia bloccato nel traffico.
FR	Il se pourrait que Marco soit coincé dans les embouteillages.

In Spanish, some expressions that express the possibility of something being one way or the other can use indicative or subjunctive mood without any preference, for example:

Tal vez salgo/salga hoy.	Perhaps I will go out today.
Quizás hablamos/hablemos mañana.	Maybe we talk tomorrow.
Probablemente voy/vaya al parque solo.	I will probably go to the park alone.
Posiblemente vienes/vengas tarde.	Possibly you will come late.

A notable exception that only uses the indicative in Spanish is “a lo mejor” (maybe), for example:

No hay nadie aquí. A lo mejor están enel parque.

There is no one here. Maybe they are at the park.

In Portuguese, some expressions that suggest the possibility of something being one way or the other, such as “talvez” and “pode ser,” meaning “perhaps” or “maybe,” use the subjunctive mood. For example:

Talvez possamos sair hoje.	Perhaps we can go out today.
Pode ser que não haja ninguém aqui.	It could be that there is no one here.

Note that some equivalent expressions exclusively use the indicative, such as “provavelmente” (probably),“possivelmente” (possibly),and “se calhar” (maybe). For example:

Provavelmente podemos sair hoje.	Probably we can go out today.
Possivelmente não há ninguém aqui.	Possibly there is no one here.
Se calhar é melhor ir embora.	Maybe it is better to leave.

In Italian, some notable exceptions that use the indicative are “forse” and “magari.” Both words mean “perhaps” or “maybe,” but “magari” indicates more excitement or hope. For example:

Forse Anna dorme presto.	Maybe Anna sleeps early.
Magari domani c’è il sole.	Maybe it is sunny tomorrow.

In French, a notable exception that uses the indicative is “peut-être,” meaning “perhaps” or “maybe,” for example:

Peut-être que c’est nuageux dehors.

Maybe it is cloudy outside.

Expressing Desires, Wishes, Feelings, and Requests

In general, desires, wishes, feelings, and requests are expressed in the subjunctive mood, for example:

SP	Quiero que comas con nosotros.	I want you to eat with us.
PT	Quero que você coma conosco.
IT	Voglio che mangi con noi.
FR	Je veux que tu manges avec nous.
SP	Espero que nos veamos pronto.	I hope that we see each other soon.
PT	Espero que nos vejamos em breve.
IT	Spero che ci vedremo presto.
FR	J’espère que nous nous reverrons bientôt.
SP	Me alegro que tu estés aquí.	I’m glad you are here.
PT	Fico feliz que você esteja aqui.
IT	Sono contento che tu sia qui.
FR	Je suis content que tu sois là.

Note that when the verb in the main clause is used to express desire, the subjunctive mood is only used if the subject and the performer of the action are not the same. For example:

SP	Quiero que estudies bien.	I want you to study well.
PT	Eu quero que você estude bem.
IT	Voglio che tu studi bene.
FR	Je veux que tu étudies bien.

If the subject and the performer of the action are the same, we use the infinitive following the verb. For example:

SP	Quiero estudiar bien.	I want to study well.
PT	Eu quero estudar bem.
IT	Voglio studiare bene.
FR	Je veux bien étudier.

In Italian, when the verb in the main clause expresses an opinion, feeling, demand, or doubt, and the subject and the performer of the action are the same, we use the infinitive preceded by “di.” For example:

Penso che tu guidi molto.	I think that you drive a lot.
Penso di guidare molto.	I think that I drive a lot.

Crede che lei corra veloce.	He believes that she runs fast.
Crede di correre veloce.	He believes that he runs fast.

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