1. Subjunctive Mood - General Overview
  2. Present Subjunctive
  3. Imperfect Subjunctive
  4. Perfect Active Subjunctive
  5. Pluperfect Active Subjunctive
  6. Perfect and Pluperfect Passive Subjunctive

Subjunctive Mood - General Overview

The subjunctive is the verbal mood of possibility, doubt, hypothetical or ideal situations, or unreal actions. It can be used either in independent clauses or subordinate clauses. We will learn about one independent use (deliberative subjunctive) and one dependent use (temporal clauses) this semester.

The subjunctive exists only in four tenses: present, imperfect, perfect, and pluperfect. The future and future perfect do not have subjunctive forms because they express actual situations or real facts.


Present Subjunctive

To form the subjunctive in the present tense, we begin as usual by finding the present stem (by going to the 2nd principal part and chopping off the final -re). Then, depending on the conjugation to which the verb belongs, the vowel at the end of the present stem will undergo a shift:

  • 1st conjugation: ā > ē
  • 2nd conjugation: ē >
  • 3rd conjugation: e > ā
  • 3rd -iō conjugation: e >
  • 4th conjugation: ī >

This pattern can be memorized using the mnemonic: shE wEArs A dIAmond tIAra.

Then, we attach the appropriate personal endings to reflect person, number, and voice: -m, -s, -t, -mus, -tis, -nt for the active; -r, -ris, -tur, -mur, -minī, -ntur for the passive.

Take a look at the following transformations from indicative to subjunctive:

  • amat > amet
  • monent > moneant
  • regitur > regātur
  • capiuntur > capiantur
  • audit > audiat

Imperfect Subjunctive

To form the imperfect subjunctive, we will take the entire 2nd principal part and then simply add our active or passive personal endings directly onto it. The final -e lengthens to ē except before -m, -t, -nt, -r, and -ntur.

Take a look at the following examples of the imperfect subjunctive in the 3rd singular active and passive (respectively):

  • amō, amāre, amāvī, amātus > amāret, amārētur
  • moneō, monēre, monuī, monitus > monēret, monērētur
  • regō, regere, rexī, rectus > regeret, regerētur
  • capiō, capere, cēpī, captus > caperet, caperētur
  • audiō, audīre, audīvī, audītus > audīret, audīrētur

Perfect Active Subjunctive

To form the perfect subjunctive, we will use the perfect stem, which can be found by going to the 3rd principal part and chopping off the final -ī. Then, we will attach the following endings:

  Singular Plural
1st -erim -erīmus
2nd -erīs -erītis
3rd -erit -erint

These endings are composed of the syllable cluster -erī- with the active personal endings.

Take a look at the following transformations from perfect indicative to perfect subjunctive:

  • amāvit > amāverit
  • monuērunt > monuerint
  • rexēre > rexerint
  • cēpit > cēperit
  • audīvērunt > audīverint

Pluperfect Active Subjunctive

To form the pluperfect subjunctive, we will use the perfect stem, which can be found by going to the 3rd principal part and chopping off the final -ī. Then, we will attach the following endings:

  Singular Plural
1st -issem -issēmus
2nd -issēs -issētis
3rd -isset -issent

These endings are composed of the syllable cluster -issē- with the active personal endings.

Take a look at the following transformations from pluperfect indicative to pluperfect subjunctive:

  • amāverat > amāvisset
  • monuerant > monuissent
  • rexerant > rexissent
  • cēperat > cēpisset
  • audīverant > audīvissent

Perfect and Pluperfect Passive Subjunctive

The perfect and pluperfect passive subjunctive, like their indicative counterparts, are compound tenses. We will observe the same rules for the formation of the perfect and pluperfect passive (i.e., use a form of the 4th principal part that matches the subject in gender, case, and number plus the present tense of sum, esse for perfect and the imperfect tense of sum, esse for pluperfect), but rather than using the indicative forms of sum, esse, we will use the subjunctive forms.

Take a look at the following transformations from the perfect passive indicative to the perfect passive subjunctive:

  • amātus est > amātus sit
  • monitae sunt > monitae sint
  • rectum est > rectum sit
  • captī sunt > captī sint
  • audīta sunt > audīta sint

Now, take a look at the following transformations from the pluperfect passive indicative to the pluperfect passive subjunctive:

  • amātus erat > amātus esset
  • monitae erant > monitae essent
  • rectum erat > rectum esset
  • captī erant > captī essent
  • audīta erant > audīta essent

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