Subjunctive Clauses are sentences that contain verbs in the subjunctive mood, which is used chiefly to express the speaker's attitude about the likelihood or factuality of a given situation.
A subjunctive mood is a verb that indicates possibility, conditionality or probability.
The subjunctive mood has to do with things which are possibilities. In English, the subjunctive form of verbs is identical to the past. "If I Had a Million Dollars" is subjunctive, although it looks like the past, because it is looking at a possible future; the Barenaked Ladies song continues "If I had a million dollars, I wouldn't have to eat Kraft dinner." Likewise, the songs "If I were a rich man"from Fiddler on the Roof and "If I were King of the Forest" from Wizard of Oz arealso in the subjunctive, and here the verb form is different from the past, which would be "was". This unique irregular subjunctive is under pressure and many people will use "was" by analogy to the other verbs which use past tense endings. Subjunctives do not have to use the word "if" as witness the many songs entitled "I wish I were . . ." Wishes represent a possibility, and are thus subjunctive.
The subjunctive is one of three moods in the English language. Its form is sometimes considered quite formal and rare in Modern English, although it still has its place in grammar. One place it is used is after certain words (called triggers) that are related to the idea of obligation. For example:
It is important that he go to school. /It is important that he be on time.
Here, go as opposed to goes and be as opposed to is are subjunctive verbs, and the trigger is the adjective important. The trigger can also be a noun or verb such as advise or insist. There is also a past subjunctive in Modern English, but it's very hard to see because the only verb that changes in English from the past indicative to the past subjunctive is the verb "to be" and it only changes in 1st and 3rd person singular. Otherwise it is exactly the same:
Back to the present subjunctive now:
It was important that he go to school yesterday.
The subjunctive is often replaced by a normal (indicative) verb or a verb with a modal of obligation in informal English:
I insist that he goes to school. I insist that he must go to school. [This is wrong though, because "I insist that he goes to school" means that the speaker is telling the other person that this "he" actually DOES GO to school whereas "he go" means "I insist that he SHOULD GO to school". See the difference? You're learning now.]
The subjunctive is also found in a few other cases, for example:
Long live [present subjunctive] the Queen. /If I were [past subjunctive] you, I'd go.
Okay, here's a quick exercise of where the subjunctive should be and is not seen too often in Modern English except in formal situations:
Most of the time, in spoken Modern English, this rule isn't adhered to, as it were. It does exist though and should be used in writing formal papers at least. These constructions can be replaced with should in these examples:
Other subjunctive examples below:
This below is an area of trouble because the subjunctive can exist in some subordinate clauses and other types of clauses that one might not notice in English:
There is the subjunctive in a quick lesson. It's really bigger than that in English and was once enormous. In Modern English, though, while there may be more constructions, the ones above are formal and not all of them are necessary anymore. Although many would argue that the subjunctive in English will be dead in the next few generations, don't listen to them because it won't be dead. It cannot die because it still exists formulaically and much of the "that clauses" will always remain subjunctive to native speakers. It just may be harder to see one day. I think that third person singular's "-s" and "-es" endings such as "he finishes" will die off in the next few hundred years before the subjunctive will cease to exist.
A statement not of fact, but of possibility or doubt or wish.
Such as : "God save the Queen" which is short for "May God save the Queen"
In the indicative it would be "God saves the Queen". In the imperative (an order) it would be "God, Save the Queen".
"Good bye" derives from the subjunctive "(may) God be with you".
It is important that he speak correct English.
I pray that everything be all right.
If I were you, I would learn the subjunctive.
These above are examples of the subjunctive in English.
The subjunctive is a grammatical mood found in many languages.
Subjunctive Clauses are sentences that contain verbs in the subjunctive mood, which is used chiefly to express the speaker's attitude about the likelihood or factuality of a given situation.
Yes, aprés que takes the subjunctive since it suggests subjectivity. Afin que, alors que and avant que are also used in the subjunctive.
subjunctive
No. This is a case where the subjunctive still lives! Use "be" instead of "is."
No, the subjunctive is not required because "when" does not introduce a contrary-to-fact condition.
The indicative mood. It should be the subjunctive mood, however: "The old sack looked as if it were about to collapse." Note the use of "were" rather than "was" with the "as if" statement.
Words that are in the present tense are categorized as a Spanish subjunctive. Any word which is stated in the present is considered a Spanish subjunctive.
The subjunctive mood is for expressing wishes, suggestions, or desires, and is usually indicated by a verb such as wish or suggest, paired then with a subjunctive verb
Yes, "you are hungry" is not in the subjunctive mood as it states a fact or condition that is real or true. Subjunctive mood is used to express a hypothetical or unreal situation.
Because it's in the subjunctive tense. The subjunctive does not change according to person (I, you, he, etc).
It is equivalent to the french subjunctive. You use it after ut and ne or to express an obligation
The English definition of the Latin word celent refers to a third person plural present active subjunctive of celo. You can translate more Latin words to English at the Globse website using the Latin-English dictionary.
The subjunctive mood is used to express wishes, recommendations, doubts, or hypothetical situations. It is typically used to talk about something that is not necessarily real or certain, such as desires, possibilities, or uncertainties. In English, the subjunctive is most commonly seen in certain phrases, such as "If I were you," or in formal language where a sense of uncertainty or doubt is implied.
Yes, aprés que takes the subjunctive since it suggests subjectivity. Afin que, alors que and avant que are also used in the subjunctive.
The subjunctive is a verb mood used to express desires, doubts, hopes, or hypothetical situations. It is often used to convey uncertainty or subjunctive mood express an action that hasn't happened yet.
Yes, the conjunction autant que can mean "as much as" ("as far as") and may be followed by the subjunctive. The choice of the dependent verb as in the indicative or subjunctive depends upon the verb in question (savoir ["to know"] historically will be always in the subjunctive) and the type of certainty/uncertainty regarding the accuracy, predictability or reliability of the answer.
Yes, "If I were an earthworm, I wouldn't have to think" is an example of the subjunctive mood. The subjunctive mood is used to express hypothetical or unreal situations. In this sentence, the speaker is imagining being an earthworm and the consequences of not having to think.
A subjunctive sentence is a type of sentence that expresses wishes, recommendations, desires, or hypothetical situations. It typically uses special verb forms to convey this mood, such as "I wish he were here" instead of "I wish he was here."