In this lesson, we will cover the present perfect subjunctive tense in Italian.
We have previously studied the subjunctive mood and the present subjunctive tense. The subjunctive mood is used to express opinion, possibilities, and feelings such as fear, doubt, hope, desire, etc.
We have also studied the present perfect tense in the indicative mood. The present perfect tense is used to describe events that happened and completed in the past or happened in the past and continue in the present.
Now, we will study the cases when we want to express opinions, possibilities, and feelings, such as fear, doubt, hope, desire, etc., about something that happened and was completed in the past or happened in the past and continues in the present. In other words, we want to describe the present perfect but in the subjunctive mood, i.e., the present perfect subjunctive tense.
Conjugation
In Italian, the present perfect subjunctive, similar to the present perfect in the indicative, uses the past participle. However, the only difference is that the auxiliary verb, whether it is “avere” or “essere,” is conjugated in the subjunctive.
Let us look at some examples of verbs conjugated using the auxiliary “avere”:
| -are ending e.g., parlare | -ere ending e.g., vendere | -ire ending e.g., dormire | ||
| io | abbia | parlato | venduto | dormito |
| tu | abbia | |||
| lui/lei | abbia | |||
| noi | abbiamo | |||
| voi | abbiate | |||
| loro | abbiano |
Similarly, these are some examples of verbs conjugated using the auxiliary “essere”:
| -are ending e.g., andare | -ere ending e.g., cadere | -ire ending e.g., partire | ||
| io | sia | andato/-a | caduto/-a | partito/-a |
| tu | sia | andato/-a | caduto/-a | partito/-a |
| lui | sia | andato | caduto | partito |
| lei | sia | andata | caduta | partita |
| noi | siamo | andati/-e | caduti/-e | partiti/-e |
| voi | siate | andati/-e | caduti/-e | partiti/-e |
| loro | siano | andati/-e | caduti/-e | partiti/-e |
Examples
Here are some more examples of the present perfect subjunctive tense in Italian in context:
| È importante che tu ti sia riposato dopo la partita. | It is good that you have relaxed after the match. |
| Spero ti sia piaciuto il tuo viaggio. | I hope that you have enjoyed your trip. |
| Mi rattrista che non mi abbia chiamato. | It makes me sad that he hasn’t called me. |
| Dubito che abbiamo visto casa tua prima di oggi. | I doubt that we have seen your house before today. |
| Sono felice che voi siate arrivato. | I am happy that you have arrived. |
| Non credo che abbiano vissuto qui. | I don’t believe they have lived here. |
Next: Imperfect Indicative Tense
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