47. Verbs in the Present Subjunctive
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The present subjunctive is formed by taking the yo form of the present indicative, dropping the -o, and adding the opposite vowel endings: -ar verbs take -e endings; -er/-ir verbs take -a endings. Almost every present-subjunctive irregularity falls out of this rule.
Key Rules
- Regular verbs — switch the ending vowel:
- -ar verbs use -e endings.
- -er and -ir verbs use -a endings.
- Irregular yo verbs — take the irregular yo stem and apply it to all persons (e.g.,
tener → tengo → tenga, tengas, tenga…).
- -car / -gar / -zar verbs — spelling change (think yo form of the preterite):
- -car → -que (marcar → marque)
- -gar → -gue (pagar → pague)
- -zar → -ce (organizar → organice)
- Stem-changing verbs — same stem changes as the present simple, except
-ir stem-changers also change in the nosotros/vosotros forms.
- Five fully irregular verbs: ser, estar, ir, saber, dar (plus haber for compound tenses).
Conjugation / Pattern Tables
Regular endings
| Pronoun |
-ar (hablar) |
-er (comer) |
-ir (vivir) |
| yo |
hable |
coma |
viva |
| tú |
hables |
comas |
vivas |
| él/ella |
hable |
coma |
viva |
| nosotros |
hablemos |
comamos |
vivamos |
| vosotros |
habléis |
comáis |
viváis |
| ellos |
hablen |
coman |
vivan |
Irregular yo-verb pattern
| Pronoun |
tener |
hacer |
decir |
venir |
conducir |
| yo |
tenga |
haga |
diga |
venga |
conduzca |
| tú |
tengas |
hagas |
digas |
vengas |
conduzcas |
| él |
tenga |
haga |
diga |
venga |
conduzca |
| nosotros |
tengamos |
hagamos |
digamos |
vengamos |
conduzcamos |
| vosotros |
tengáis |
hagáis |
digáis |
vengáis |
conduzcáis |
| ellos |
tengan |
hagan |
digan |
vengan |
conduzcan |
Other yo-irregulars: oír → oiga, traer → traiga, ver → vea.
-car / -gar / -zar spelling change
| Verb |
yo (preterite) |
Present subjunctive |
| marcar |
marqué |
marque, marques, marque, marquemos, marquéis, marquen |
| pagar |
pagué |
pague, pagues, pague, paguemos, paguéis, paguen |
| organizar |
organicé |
organice, organices, organice, organicemos, organicéis, organicen |
Stem-changers (note -ir exceptions)
| Verb |
Pattern |
nosotros / vosotros |
| pensar (e→ie) |
piense, pienses, piense, pensemos, penséis, piensen |
normal |
| volver (o→ue) |
vuelva, vuelvas, vuelva, volvamos, volváis, vuelvan |
normal |
| pedir (e→i) |
pida, pidas, pida, pidamos, pidáis, pidan |
also changes |
| sentir (e→ie) |
sienta, sientas, sienta, sintamos, sintáis, sientan |
also changes |
| dormir (o→ue) |
duerma, duermas, duerma, durmamos, durmáis, duerman |
also changes |
The 5 irregular verbs
| Pronoun |
ser |
estar |
ir |
saber |
dar |
| yo |
sea |
esté |
vaya |
sepa |
dé |
| tú |
seas |
estés |
vayas |
sepas |
des |
| él |
sea |
esté |
vaya |
sepa |
dé |
| nosotros |
seamos |
estemos |
vayamos |
sepamos |
demos |
| vosotros |
seáis |
estéis |
vayáis |
sepáis |
deis |
| ellos |
sean |
estén |
vayan |
sepan |
den |
Plus haber → haya, hayas, haya, hayamos, hayáis, hayan (used for the present perfect subjunctive).
Examples
| Spanish |
English |
| que yo hable |
(that) I speak |
| que tú comas |
(that) you eat |
| que él viva |
(that) he live |
| que nosotros tengamos |
(that) we have |
| que ellos digan |
(that) they say |
| que yo pague |
(that) I pay |
| que tú duermas |
(that) you sleep |
| que él sea |
(that) he be |
| que nosotros vayamos |
(that) we go |
Notes & Gotchas
- The mnemonic: "Opposite vowel — -ar takes -e, -er/-ir takes -a."
dé (give, subjunctive) carries an accent to distinguish it from de (preposition, "of").
esté and estés keep accents on the final syllable (like the present indicative of estar).
- For irregular yo verbs, the "yo trick" works:
salgo → salga, pongo → ponga, traigo → traiga.