Gramàtica · Verbs · B2 · 15 min

The subjunctive in time

Sequence of tenses, relative clauses, and the Portuguese infinitive that conjugates.

De moment, les explicacions d’aquesta secció són en anglès; els exemples són en totes les llengües.

The subjunctive lesson covered what triggers the mood. Three harder questions remain. Which tense of the subjunctive follows a past main verb? Where does the subjunctive appear outside 'que' clauses after a verb, in relative clauses and after conjunctions? And when does an infinitive do the job instead? Here the sisters split three ways: Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Catalan follow Latin's sequence of tenses; French speech has given it up; Romanian never had it.

Sequence of tenses

	Spanish	French	Italian	Portuguese	Romanian	Catalan
I want you to come.	Quiero que vengas.	Je veux que tu viennes.	Voglio che tu venga.	Quero que você venha.	Vreau să vii.	Vull que vinguis.
I wanted you to come.	Quería que vinieras.	Je voulais que tu viennes.	Volevo che tu venissi.	Eu queria que você viesse.	Voiam să vii.	Volia que vinguessis.
It's a pity he's left.	Es una pena que se haya ido.	C'est dommage qu'il soit parti.	È un peccato che se ne sia andato.	É uma pena que ele tenha ido embora.	Păcat că a plecat.	És una llàstima que se n'hagi anat.
I asked him to wait.	Le pedí que esperara.	Je lui ai demandé d'attendre.	Gli ho chiesto di aspettare.	Pedi para ele esperar.	L-am rugat să aștepte.	Li vaig demanar que esperés.

Past main verb, past subjunctive (except in French and Romanian)

Italian is the strictest: after volevo, the present venga is simply wrong. Spanish, Portuguese and Catalan follow the same rule, although much of Latin America accepts the present after a past when the event is still to come (me pidió que lo llame). French speech uses the present subjunctive whatever the main verb (je voulais que tu viennes); que tu vinsses survives only in literature. Romanian să forms have no past of their own, only a perfect (să fi venit), so voiam să vii is correct; Romanian keeps the original tense in reported speech as well (a spus că vine 'he said he was coming'). With 'ask' and 'tell', French and Italian prefer de / di + infinitive, and Brazil para + infinitive.

In relative clauses and after conjunctions

A relative clause takes the subjunctive when it describes something not known to exist: Spanish busco un piso que tenga terraza is any flat that has one, while que tiene terraza points at a particular flat. Romanian does the same with care să. After a superlative, French and Italian also like the subjunctive (le meilleur film que j'aie vu, il film più bello che abbia visto), where the others state the fact. Purpose ('so that') and concession ('although') take the subjunctive in five sisters; Romanian uses ca să for purpose and the indicative with deși 'although'.

Volevo che venissi con noi.
Quería que vinieras con nosotros.
Je voulais que tu viennes avec nous.
Eu queria que você viesse com a gente.
Voiam să vii cu noi.
Volia que vinguessis amb nosaltres.
I wanted you to come with us.
Cerco un appartamento che abbia un terrazzo.
Busco un piso que tenga terraza.
Je cherche un appartement qui ait une terrasse.
Estou procurando um apartamento que tenha varanda.
Caut un apartament care să aibă terasă.
Busco un pis que tingui terrassa.
I'm looking for a flat with a terrace.
Any flat, as long as it has one. In everyday French qui a is also heard. Latin America says departamento or apartamento for Spain's piso.
È il film più bello che abbia mai visto.
Es la mejor película que he visto nunca.
C'est le meilleur film que j'aie jamais vu.
É o melhor filme que eu já vi.
E cel mai bun film pe care l-am văzut vreodată.
És la millor pel·lícula que he vist mai.
It's the best film I've ever seen.
French aie and Italian abbia are subjunctives after a superlative; the others use the indicative.
Siamo partiti presto perché i bambini potessero dormire.
Nos fuimos pronto para que los niños pudieran dormir.
On est partis tôt pour que les enfants puissent dormir.
Saímos cedo para as crianças poderem dormir.
Am plecat devreme ca să poată dormi copiii.
Vam marxar d'hora perquè els nens poguessin dormir.
We left early so the children could sleep.
Italian perché is 'so that' with the subjunctive and 'because' with the indicative; Catalan perquè works the same way. Portuguese prefers the personal infinitive, poderem.
Prima di uscire, chiudi la finestra.
Antes de irte, cierra la ventana.
Avant de partir, ferme la fenêtre.
Antes de você sair, fecha a janela.
Înainte să pleci, închide fereastra.
Abans de marxar, tanca la finestra.
Before you leave, close the window.
Same subject: an infinitive everywhere but Romanian, whose înainte de a pleca is the bookish alternative. Portuguese can give the infinitive its own subject: antes de você sair.
Qualunque cosa succeda, chiamami.
Pase lo que pase, llámame.
Quoi qu'il arrive, appelle-moi.
Aconteça o que acontecer, me liga.
Orice s-ar întâmpla, sună-mă.
Passi el que passi, truca'm.
Whatever happens, call me.
Spanish and Catalan repeat the present subjunctive; Portuguese pairs a present with a future subjunctive (aconteça … acontecer); Romanian uses the conditional.

An infinitive with endings

Portuguese has a personal infinitive that takes person endings: falar, falares, falar, falarmos, falardes, falarem. It lets an infinitive carry its own subject, so where the other sisters need 'that' + subjunctive, Portuguese uses a preposition and an infinitive: para eles saberem 'for them to know', é melhor vocês irem 'you'd better go', depois de chegarmos 'after we arrive'. Galician, its northern neighbour, has one too. Romanian went the opposite way and gave the infinitive's jobs to să + subjunctive. The short infinitive survives after a few verbs (pot veni beside pot să vin 'I can come') and in bookish constructions with a; the old long infinitive became a noun: mâncare 'food', plecare 'departure', vedere 'view'.

	Spanish	French	Italian	Portuguese	Romanian	Catalan
for me to speak	para que yo hable	pour que je parle	perché io parli	para eu falar	ca să vorbesc	perquè jo parli
for us to speak	para que hablemos	pour que nous parlions	perché parliamo	para falarmos	ca să vorbim	perquè parlem
for them to speak	para que hablen	pour qu'ils parlent	perché parlino	para eles falarem	ca să vorbească	perquè parlin

So that someone speaks

Les germanes

Strict, relaxed, timeless

Latin matched the tense of the subjunctive to the tense of the main verb (consecutio temporum), and Italian guards that rule most carefully, with Spanish, Portuguese and Catalan close behind. French kept the rule in writing until the 19th century, but speech let the imperfect subjunctive go; today qu'il fût and qu'il eût mark a text as literary. Romanian never had to choose: once its imperfect subjunctive had turned into a pluperfect indicative (cântasem), the să subjunctive was left with a single tense, and the language stopped shifting tenses in reported speech too. Portuguese and Romanian are mirror images: one gave the infinitive person endings, the other gave the subjunctive the infinitive's work. The origin of the Portuguese personal infinitive is debated: some trace it to the Latin imperfect subjunctive (CANTĀREM), others to the plain infinitive with endings added by analogy.