We are not rabid animals living off of pure instinct

We are capable of rational thinking and understanding. 

Just because someone is cooking food doesn’t mean you’re entitled to eat it. 

Just because a banker is counting money doesn’t mean you’re being given free money.

Just because a person is naked doesn’t mean you’re entitled to fuck them. 

You are not entitled to someone else’s body just because it’s exposed. 

Amazon normally brings in over 34 BILLION dollars every day. The loss of even one day’s profits could mean massive leverage for the strikers – especially when the boycott coincides with what is usually one of Amazon’s busiest days of the year, their Prime deals day.

I would say yes and no. There are easy parts of subjunctive, and there are more confusing parts of subjunctive. The subjunctive mood encompasses a lot, it’s like asking if there’s an easy rule for indicative and I’d be like “well maybe present tense is kind of up front about what it wants, but preterite/imperfect aren’t always easy to understand”… it’s like that.

The only mood that’s really easy to understand completely is the imperative [commands] because it’s “do it” or “don’t do it” and it’s a lot of conjugation and practice but it’s not like things change or get weird.

But subjunctive. Anything I try to explain about when it’s used is a big oversimplification so just bear with it because not everything perfectly lines up.

But in general there are maybe 5 or 6 general ways that present subjunctive is used, and I’ll explain them all in more detail:

Expressing desire/opinion/imposition of will/wish fulfillment and opinions based on emotional input

Subjunctive phrases

Subjunctive possibility

Ignorance, doubt, or disbelief

Politeness [and the subject of politeness also includes #6 which is “indirect commands” or “a politer way to ask someone to do something]

There’s also some overlap between them, because like I said it doesn’t all line up perfectly into little boxes or categories all the time. I’m also arranging them in order of things most needed to know before you go on to the next part.

Also please keep in mind this is specifically present subjunctive, but I will go over imperfect subjunctive a bit because there is some overlap but also imperfect subjunctive can be more particular.

When you’re talking subjunctive most people will lay out subjunctive in terms of #1 and that makes sense because it’s a good starting point. When you’re talking about subjunctive in this sense, it’s primarily made up of two causes with the first clause in some kind of indicative and then following it is a subjunctive clause.

The clauses are then normally connected with a que or sometimes there’s a de que or a que depending on the verb. Some verbs use specific prepositions, it’s not like the meaning is suddenly different exactly.

Quiero que pongas la mesa. = I want you to set the table.

The quiero is in present tense [indicative], while pongas is present subjunctive. This would be something like a desire or an imposition of will.

The yo wants tú to do something, and by imposing their will on that person. 

It can also be used impersonally [without a person, talking about an inanimate object]:

Ojalá que no llueva. = I hope (to God) that it doesn’t rain.

Espero que nieve. = I hope it snows. 

Deseo que haga buen tiempo. = I hope the weather’s nice. [lit. “I hope it makes good weather”]

These sorts of things sometimes cross into subjunctive possibility, but the idea is that you’re wishing or wanting something to happen, and the thing that is “to happen” is then in subjunctive.

In its base form, subjunctive is “someone wants something to happen” and it’s divided between “someone wants [indicative] + that/to [que] + to happen [subjunctive]

And in this form, it’s very important that there be two different subjects in two clauses. You CANNOT have subjunctive in this particular sense without it or it would come up as indicative:

Quiero que te vayas a dormir. = I want you to go to sleep.

Quiero irme a dormir. / Me quiero ir a dormir. = I want to go to sleep.

A yo cannot really “act on itself”… you’re just expressing a desire. It’s not an imposition of will if it isn’t someone else’s will… it’s just an expression of will.

So in other words “I want you to set the table” is a yo working influence over a tú. But quiero poner la mesa “I want to set the table” has no conflict of influence.

The next part is opinion and particularly emotional opinions. I say emotional since they’re usually done with words related to emotion, but what it really means is subjective. Subjective is subjunctive.

In other words someone/someone is “happy/sad/afraid/curious/scared/worried” that “something will happen”. They aren’t always emotions, but they can be done with subjective opinions like “important/interesting/curious” etc… It also includes me gusta(n) or me gustaría(n) though me gustaría normally indicates imperfect subjunctive.

These do sometimes exist with imperfect subjunctive because of things happening in the past but for the purposes of explaining these will all be in present subjunctive.

Me alegra que hayas venido. = I’m glad you could come.Me alegra que vengas. = I’m glad you’re coming.

Es triste que no sea así. = It’s sad it’s not like that.Es triste que diga eso. = It’s sad that he/she would say that.Me entristece que lo haga. = It saddens me that he/she/it would do that.

Es curioso que nadie quiera ir. = It’s curious/strange that no one would want to go.

Es importante que escuchen. = It’s important for them to listen.

Es interesante que lo menciones. = It’s interesting you mention it.

Qué bien que estés aquí. = I’m glad you’re here. [lit. “how nice (it is) that you’re here”]

There are times when people will use indicative instead of subjunctive, but predominantly subjunctive is the most applicable and polite.

#2 Subjunctive phrases is a very overarching kind of thing. It shows up in a lot of the other categories. But basically there are many words or expressions that generally (and sometimes always) indicate subjunctive. Some of these include…

a menos que = unless (something happens)

con tal (de) que = as long as (something happens)

hasta que = until (something happens)

a no ser que = unless (something happens)

antes (de) que = before (something happens)

después (de) que = after (something happens)

hacer que = to make (something do something else)

para que = so that (something could happen)

sin que = without (something happening)

tal vez / quizá = maybe

puede que = it might/could (be that)

ojalá* (que) = I hope to God / hopefully (something happens)

*I mentioned it before but ojalá is a word that literally means “I hope to God” or something like “God willing”. It comes from Arabic most likely something like “inshallah”, where “Allah” comes out as Alá in Spanish.

This list also includes es importante que, es curioso que, es triste que and others. There’s also no pensar/creer que which I’ll cover more in the part on doubt.

There are also verbs that generally imply subjunctive when used with a que

pedir que = to request that (something happen)

desear que = to desire/want that (something happen)

querer que = to want that (something happen)

obligar a que = to force/obligate (someone to do something)

exigir que = to demand that (something happen)

sugerir que = to suggest that (something happen)

mandar que = to order that (something happen)

lamentar que = to regret/lament that (something happened)

preferir que = to prefer that (something happen)

esperar que = to hope that (something happen)esperar a que = to wait until (something happens)

I should say that there are some phrases that ARE NOT ALWAYS subjunctive, depending on use. The big example of this is después que which can be subjunctive or indicative.

They make most sense in subjunctive when the thing hasn’t happened yet but still might. This is also going to use imperfect subjunctive because a lot of the indicative examples of them do happen in past tense. I will say that’s more common with después though.

Me voy a dormir después (de) que me llamen. = I’m going to bed after they call me.

In this case it makes sense to have subjunctive because it implies that the “they” hasn’t called yet. This crosses into possibility. There’s a possibility they won’t, or they might. But the yo doesn’t know when.

For indicative it would have to be after it had already happened:

después (de) que me llamaron = after they called me

While you do see something like después (de) que me llamaran which is imperfect subjunctive “after they had called me” or “after they would call me” it’s harder to translate without proper context.

Let’s just say that generally when it has already happened, it’s indicative for después.

#3 Possibility. This one is the hardest to explain because English’s subjunctive is conjugated like indicative, which makes it harder to spot in English when it is being used.

Possibility is somewhere between doubt and subjunctive phrases, but it means that it gets used with unlikely events. These are usually hypothetical situations or things that haven’t happened yet but might later on but you don’t know when.

Espero a que llegue el tren. = I’m waiting until the train arrives.

In this sense, you don’t know when the train will arrive, but it’s something like a possibility.

The most common one is puede que which is used as “might/could”:

Puede que llueva. = It might rain.

Puede que haga sol. = It might be sunny.

Puede que vayan a la playa. = They might go to the beach.

Puede que se queden en casa. = They might stay home.

Puede que tengas razón. = You might be right.

Puede que tengan hambre. = They might be hungry.

The use of puede que is kind of like a guess or a supposition.

You can also say puede que sí “it might” or puede que no “it might not” as complete sentences.

Possibilities like this can sometimes be translated with words involving -ever like “whenever”, “however”, “whoever/whomever”, “wherever”, “whatever”:

lo que sea = whatever

Sea lo que sea. = Be that as it may/were. / Whatever it is.

A quien corresponda… = To whom it concerns…

Quien lea esto… = Whoever reads this…A quien lea esto… = To whomever reads this…

dondequiera que estés = wherever you areadondequiera que vayas = wherever you go

como quieras = as you wish / whatever you sayHaz lo que quieras. = Do whatever you want.Haz lo que te dé la gana. = Do whatever you want.

en cuanto puedas = as soon as you can

pase lo que pase = come what may

Sometimes whether it’s indicative or subjunctive depends on your style or personal mood:

Cuando tienes tiempo… = When you have the time…

Cuando tengas tiempo… = Whenever you have the time…

Using subjunctive here just means that you’re kind of like “no rush” and you don’t expect them to get back to you very soon.

They can also be used in the sense of contrary to fact or denials of reality. This I find makes the most sense with aunque

When aunque is used with indicative it’s roughly “although”. When it’s subjunctive aunque is often “even if/though”

Aunque sean de piedra… = Even if they’re made of stone… / Though they be made of stone…

Aunque sea verdad… = Even if that is true…Aunque fuera verdad… = Even if that were true…

Aunque digas la verdad… = Even if you tell the truth…Aunque no digas/dijeras la verdad… = Even if you don’t tell the truth…

Aunque tengas razón… = Even if you’re right…

#4 Ignorance is kind of the same as those above, but it’s a little more straightforward. You don’t know what you don’t know, so ignorance or doubt or disbelief are uncertain by nature. It’s that uncertainty that makes things very easy to understand.

Dudo que sea así. = I doubt it’s like that.

Dudo que llueva. = I doubt it will rain.

Que yo sepa. = As far as I know. / To my knowledge…Que tú sepas. = As far as you know.Que ellos/ellas sepan. = As far as they know.Que nosotros/nosotras sepamos. = As far as we know. / To our knowledge…

A very common confusion exists with no creer and no pensar and no estar seguro/a, and their affirmative counterparts. But it’s very simple: firm beliefs and certainty and thoughts are indicative, and being unsure or uncertain or not believing are most often subjunctive:

pensar que = to think that + indicativeno pensar que = to not that thing + subjunctive

creer que = to believe that + indicativeno creer que = to not believe that + subjunctive

estar seguro/a (de) que = to be sure that + indicativeno estar seguro/a (de) que = to be unsure that / to not be certain that + subjunctive

The affirmatives show confidence, and the negatives show uncertainty:

Pienso que es importante. = I think it’s important.No pienso que sea importante. = I don’t think it’s important. / I don’t think it would be important.

Creo que es importante. = I believe it’s important.No creo que sea importante. = I don’t believe it’s important. / I don’t believe it would be important.

Estoy seguro/a (de) que es importante. = I’m sure it’s important.No estoy seguro/a (de) que sea importante. = I’m not sure if it’s important.

Basically the lesson is that your thoughts and beliefs when phrases affirmatively are indicative. English is a little wishy-washy in that we sometimes say “to think” in a more doubtful or uncertain way, but Spanish is very clear that it’s indicative unless you add a negative to it:

Pienso que no es posible. = I think that’s it’s not possible.

No pienso que sea posible. = I don’t think that’s possible.

#5 Politeness

There are times when you use subjunctive for politeness. I would say in general when you’re asking for something or ordering food, it’s normally fine to use present tense, and then if you want to be VERY painfully polite you can use conditional.

Subjunctive however is sometimes used to soften what might be considered too blunt or direct in indicative or imperative. This is how you get something like cuando tienes tiempo vs. cuando tengas tiempo, or something like si es posible vs. si sea posible

The subjunctive can imply a kind of uncertainty or deference in those situations, but that can sort of read as you being insecure or possibly insincere, like it’s possible to see subjunctive and read it as sarcastic… Sort of like “do what you want” can be turned into a more subjunctive “do whatever you want” and that can make a sharp distinction.

But since we kind of covered that already above, I’ll talk about subjunctive politeness in terms of what’s known as indirect commands.

An indirect command is a murky halfway point between subjunctive and imperative mood.

While imperative mood is affirmative or negative commands [“do it” vs. “don’t do it”], the subjunctive kind of takes any rough edges off of that. 

There are times, even when it’s polite, that a command might feel too direct. And there are also times when you’re wishing for something to happen on someone’s behalf, OR you’re asking someone to tell someone else to do something.

That last one is really the full definition of “indirect”:

Canten. = Sing. [plural; direct]

Diles que canten. = Tell them to sing. [di being the tú command of decir]Que canten. = Have them sing.

Instead of telling someone directly to “sing”, you can tell someone “hey, you go tell them to sing”… thus making it indirect.

The use of que + subjunctive is very common for indirect commands and it’s not always specifically politeness, but it reads as impersonal or indirect:

Que así sea. = So be it.

Que sean felices y coman perdices. = “And they lived happily ever after”.[lit. “may they be happy and eat partridges”, where partridges were the kind of thing a noble might eat so it’s like “let them be happy and be wealthy”]

Que no llueva. = I hope it doesn’t rain. / Let it not rain. / “Let’s hope it doesn’t rain”.

Que tengas un buen día. = Have a nice day. [tú]Que tenga un buen día. = Have a nice day. [formal]Que tengan un buen día. = Have a nice day. [plural]

Que haya luz. = Let there be light.Que exista luz. = Let there be light.

Indirect commands always use the subjunctive in these cases.

Also please note that present subjunctive can sometimes be read with a future kind of tone. It’s because present (even in indicative; especially in indicative) has a kind of declarative sense, and a kind of short-term future sense.

So there are times when you see present subjunctive used even though the translation uses something closer to how future tense would sound:

No me importa (lo) que digan. = I don’t care what they say. [present declarative]

No me importa (lo) que digan. = I don’t care what they’re going to say. [short-term future]*no me importa lo que digan is also correct

This is also more generally present subjunctive because it comes across as “what they may (or may not) say”.

In general subjunctive isn’t so difficult once you’re able to recognize the different situations and scenarios that require subjunctive. It’s only really confusing when there are times when you can use either indicative or subjunctive and they change the implied meaning… not enough to change the ENTIRE meaning, but enough to add certain nuances.

It can be like walking a tightrope but when you get more experience, subjunctive isn’t as hard and daunting as it is when you first come across it.

It’s that time again. Sigh. I was able to afford my medicine last month but this month, things are tight again and I need a little help if I can get it. Donations, commissions ($5 for 5000 words, contact me for bigger pieces) are all welcome.

This is urgent as my usual followers know - I have epilepsy and bipolar disorder and cannot function without my medicine. Currently in need of $88 - 

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