70 MUST-KNOW SPANISH
SUBJUNCTIVE TRIGGERS
VERBS THAT TRIGGER THE SUBJUNCTIVE
Aconsejar que Dudar que Encantar que*
To advise that To doubt that To love that
Alegrar que* Esperar que Desear que
To be glad that To hope that To wish that
Dar gusto que* Gustar que* Decir que
To be glad that To like that To say that
Dar miedo que* Interesar que* Molestar que
To be afraid of/that To be interested in It bothers
Note: Verbs followed by * of emotions require indirect object pronouns to express who experiences such feelings.
VERBS THAT TRIGGER THE SUBJUNCTIVE
Necesitar que Preocupar que* Sentir que
To need that To worry that / To be worried To feel that
No creer que Prohibir que Sorprender que*
To not think that To forbid that It surprises
Pedir que Querer que Sugerir que
To ask that To want that To suggest that
Permitir que Recomendar que
To allow that To recommend that
Note: Verbs followed by * of emotions require indirect object pronouns to express who experiences such feelings.
VERBS THAT TRIGGER THE SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD
Verbs that express hopes, desires, emotions, requests, recommendations, and uncertainty
trigger the subjunctive.
[Verb trigger] + que + [verb in subjunctive]
Les sugiero que hablen con la directora.
I suggest you speak with the director.
Mauricio nos pidió que no dijéramos nada.
Mauricio asked us not to say anything.
SPANISH IMPERSONAL PHRASES FOR THE SUBJUNCTIVE
Es absurdo que Es fantástico que Es increíble que
It's absurd that It’s fantastic that It’s incredible that
Es bueno que Es horrible que Es imprescindible que
It’s good that It’s horrible that It’s essential that
Es difícil que Es importante que Es interesante que
It’s difficult that It’s important that It’s interesting that
Es extraño que Es imposible que Es malo que
It’s strange that It’s impossible that It’s bad that
Es lógico que
It’s logical that
SPANISH IMPERSONAL PHRASES FOR THE SUBJUNCTIVE
Es mejor que Es preferible que Es terrible que
It’s better that It’s better that It’s terrible that
Es natural que Es probable que Es una lástima que
It’s natural that It’s probable that It’s a shame that
Es necesario que Es ridículo que Es urgente que
It’s necessary that It’s ridiculous that It’s urgent that
Es normal que Es suficiente que Puede que
It’s normal that It's enough that It’s possible that / It might
SPANISH WORDS THAT TRIGGER SUBJUNCTIVE
A fin de que Como si Cuando
So that As if When
A no ser que Con la condición de que De ahí que
Unless On the condition that Hence / Therefore
A pesar de que Con tal de que Después de que
Although As long as After
Aunque En caso de que
Even though In case
SPANISH WORDS THAT TRIGGER SUBJUNCTIVE
En cuanto Probablemente Tan pronto como
As soon as Probably / Likely As soon as
Hasta que Sin que Tanto como
Until Without As much as
Para que Quizá Tal vez
So that Perhaps / Maybe Maybe
Posiblemente Ojalá
Possibly / Perhaps I hope / Hopefully
SPANISH WORDS THAT TRIGGER SUBJUNCTIVE
Spanish adverbs and conjunctions that convey probability, uncertainty, hope, or refer to
hypothetical scenarios are triggers for the subjunctive mood.
[Conjugated verb] + [trigger] + [verb in subjunctive]
Háblame cuando llegues.
Call me when you get there.
Te voy a esperar hasta que termines.
I’m going to wait for you until you finish.
USING CUANDO WITH SUBJUNCTIVE & INDICATIVE
CUANDO + INDICATIVE CUANDO + SUBJUNCTIVE
Habitual actions or past events. Future actions or hypothetical events.
Cuando llegué, Tim estaba dormido. Háblame cuando llegues.
When I arrived, Tim was asleep. Call me when you arrive.
KEY POINTS: SUBJUNCTIVE TRIGGERS
Verbs, words, and phrases that convey Verb triggers for the subjunctive are
doubt, desires, hopes, demands, used in sentences with two subjects and
suggestions, uncertainty, and probability two verbs.
are subjunctive triggers. Many expressions with es + adjective are
Examples of common verbs that trigger examples of impersonal phrases with
the Spanish subjunctive are esperar, subjunctive.
querer, pedir, and aconsejar. Impersonal phrases that imply certainty
Spanish verbs of emotion express the or factual information are used with the
feelings someone’s actions or behavior indicative mood.
causes in a person.
LINK TO THIS GUIDE
70 Must-Know Spanish Subjunctive Triggers
RELATED GUIDES & RESOURCES TO CHECK OUT
A Simple Guide to Master the Spanish Subjunctive
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