CEFR B1
What you will learn
- Build all six persons of regular present-subjunctive verbs in the three conjugations.
- Carry present-tense stem and spelling changes into frequent irregular subjunctive forms.
- Construct a que-clause when two subjects are linked by a wish, request or judgement.
Before you start
- Have studied “Essential irregular present forms for A1”.
The idea
The present subjunctive can point to now or later. Present names its time orientation; subjunctive marks how the speaker frames the clause—as wanted, requested, evaluated, doubted or still pending rather than simply asserted. Learn the form and the choice separately. A correct trigger with a wrong ending still fails, and a perfect form in an asserted fact still uses the wrong mood.
When the subject of both actions is the same, Spanish normally uses an infinitive: “Prefiero salir temprano.” When the subjects differ, the second action becomes a finite que-clause: “Prefiero que Ana salga temprano.”
The subject change does not create the subjunctive by itself. It supplies the clause shape; a wish, request, emotion or judgement supplies the non-assertive frame.
Complete regular present subjunctive
| person | hablar | comer | vivir |
|---|---|---|---|
| yo | hable | coma | viva |
| tú | hables | comas | vivas |
| él / ella / usted | hable | coma | viva |
| nosotros / nosotras | hablemos | comamos | vivamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | habléis | comáis | viváis |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | hablen | coman | vivan |
Six complete high-frequency irregular paradigms
| person | ser | ir | estar | dar | saber | haber |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| yo | sea | vaya | esté | dé | sepa | haya |
| tú | seas | vayas | estés | des | sepas | hayas |
| él / ella / usted | sea | vaya | esté | dé | sepa | haya |
| nosotros / nosotras | seamos | vayamos | estemos | demos | sepamos | hayamos |
| vosotros / vosotras | seáis | vayáis | estéis | deis | sepáis | hayáis |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | sean | vayan | estén | den | sepan | hayan |
Spelling and stem changes preserve sound or the present pattern
| present evidence | subjunctive pattern | reason |
|---|---|---|
| busco | busque / busquemos | c changes to qu before e |
| llego | llegue / lleguemos | g changes to gu before e |
| empiezo | empiece / empecemos | e→ie appears outside nosotros/vosotros; z changes to c before e |
| pido | pida / pidamos | -ir stem change also reaches nosotros/vosotros as e→i |
How it sounds
- La coordinadora pide que Leo envíe el horario hoy.The person asking and the person sending are different subjects. A request is framed with a main verb plus que. The present yo form is envío; remove -o and use the -ar subjunctive ending for Leo.
Check objective 1Another case
A proposed answer is “cierra” for this case: “Use the first panel. Elena quiere que Marcos cierra la ventana. (cerrar)”. Choose the only valid form.
A proposed answer is “cerre” for this case: “Use the first panel. Elena quiere que Marcos cerre la ventana. (cerrar)”. Choose the only valid form.
Answer available without interaction
Answer: cierre — The subjects differ and Elena expresses a wish. Cerrar is an -ar verb with e→ie outside nosotros/vosotros, so third-person singular is cierre.
The subjects differ and Elena expresses a wish. Cerrar is an -ar verb with e→ie outside nosotros/vosotros, so third-person singular is cierre.
Answer: cierre — The subjects differ and Elena expresses a wish. Cerrar is an -ar verb with e→ie outside nosotros/vosotros, so third-person singular is cierre.
The subjects differ and Elena expresses a wish. Cerrar is an -ar verb with e→ie outside nosotros/vosotros, so third-person singular is cierre.
Check objective 2Another case
A proposed answer is “traemos” for this case: “Use the three folders in the middle panel. Es necesario que nosotros traemos los documentos. (traer)”. Choose the only valid form.
A proposed answer is “traegamos” for this case: “Use the three folders in the middle panel. Es necesario que nosotros traegamos los documentos. (traer)”. Choose the only valid form.
Answer available without interaction
Answer: traigamos — The yo form traigo supplies traig-. Nosotros takes the -er/-ir subjunctive ending -amos: traigamos.
The yo form traigo supplies traig-. Nosotros takes the -er/-ir subjunctive ending -amos: traigamos.
Answer: traigamos — The yo form traigo supplies traig-. Nosotros takes the -er/-ir subjunctive ending -amos: traigamos.
The yo form traigo supplies traig-. Nosotros takes the -er/-ir subjunctive ending -amos: traigamos.
Check objective 3Another case
Choose the complete two-subject wish construction.
Choose the complete two-subject judgement construction.
Answer available without interaction
Answer: Elena quiere que Marcos cierre la ventana. — Two subjects linked by a wish require que plus the present subjunctive.
Two subjects linked by a wish require que plus the present subjunctive.
Answer: Es necesario que nosotros traigamos los documentos. — A judgement with a different subordinate subject uses que plus the present subjunctive.
A judgement with a different subordinate subject uses que plus the present subjunctive.
What your own language pushes you to say
Wrong Quiero Ana venir temprano.
Right Quiero que Ana venga temprano.
With different subjects, Spanish needs a finite que-clause; venir also inherits the irregular present stem veng-.
Challenge: apply every rule
Solve every case and justify each choice: 1) A proposed answer is “traigamos” for this case: “Use the first panel. Elena quiere que Marcos traigamos la ventana. (cerrar)”. Choose the only valid form. 2) A proposed answer is “cierre” for this case: “Use the three folders in the middle panel. Es necesario que nosotros cierre los documentos. (traer)”. Choose the only valid form. 3) Choose the complete two-subject wish construction.
Answer available without interaction
- Build all six persons of regular present-subjunctive verbs in the three conjugations.
- Carry present-tense stem and spelling changes into frequent irregular subjunctive forms.
- Construct a que-clause when two subjects are linked by a wish, request or judgement.
Answer: cierre · traigamos · Elena quiere que Marcos cierre la ventana.
The subjects differ and Elena expresses a wish. Cerrar is an -ar verb with e→ie outside nosotros/vosotros, so third-person singular is cierre. The yo form traigo supplies traig-. Nosotros takes the -er/-ir subjunctive ending -amos: traigamos. Two subjects linked by a wish require que plus the present subjunctive.
Curriculum alignment and sources
- B1 communication includes expressing wishes, intentions, opinions and reasons in connected familiar discourse; the grammatical sequence is editorial. · CEFR descriptors search
- The B1 column lists the regular present-subjunctive paradigm, inherited present irregularities, key irregular verbs, wishes, doubt, desiderative clauses, judgements, future time clauses and purpose clauses. · ic-pcic-grammar-b1-b2
Continue along this corridor
Practise this: “Quiero que vengas”: the subjunctiveEssential irregular present forms for A1When to use the subjunctive: assertion, reaction and pending eventsThe imperative: choose the addressee, polarity and regional form