Subjonctif

Explanations

How to form the subjonctif

To make up for the difficulty in knowing when to use the French subjunctive, the conjugations are relatively easy. All regular -er, -ir, and -re verbs as well as many irregular verbs* are conjugated according to this pattern:

  1. Start with the present tense ils conjugation of the verb
  2. Drop –ent to find the subjunctive stem
  3. Add the appropriate subjunctive ending: -e, -es, -e, -ions, -iez, -ent
aimer finir vendre partir couvrir mettre
ils aiment finissent vendent partent couvrent mettent
stem aim- finiss- vend- part- couvr- mett-
Subjunctive endings
… que je / j’ -e aime finisse vende parte couvre mette
… que tu -es aimes finisses vendes partes couvres mettes
… qu’il/elle/on -e aime finisse vende parte couvre mette
… que nous -ions aimions finissions vendions partions couvrions mettions
… que vous -iez aimiez finissiez vendiez partiez couvriez mettiez
… qu’ils/elles -ent aiment finissent vendent partent couvrent mettent

Conseils concis
*Irregular -ir verbs conjugated like partir and couvrir and irregular –re verbsconjugated like mettre are all regular in the subjunctive.
The singular and third person plural subjunctive conjugations for -er verbs are the same as their indicative conjugations, so these are good verbs to use when you’re not sure whether you need the subjunctive.

When to use the subjonctive

The subjunctive is a special verb form, called a mood, that is used in dependent clauses to indicate some sort of subjectivity, uncertainty, or unreality in the mind of the speaker. In French, feelings like doubt and desire require the subjunctive, as do expressions of necessity, possibility, and judgment. Please scroll down to see the complete list of verbs, expressions, and conjunctions.
Note, however, that there are two additional conditions to meet before using the subjunctive:
1) Que or qui
The expression in the main clause must end with the relative pronoun que or qui. If it ends with thepreposition de, you need to use the infinitive.

Il est important que tu fasses tes devoirs. It’s important for you to do your homework.
Il est important de faire tes devoirs. It’s important to do your homework.
Il est important de fasses tes devoirs.

2) Two subjects
The subject of the main clause and that of the dependent clause must be different. If they’re the same, just use the infinitive.

Je veux que tu ailles à la banque. I want you to go to the bank.
Je veux aller à la banque. I want to go to the bank.
Je veux que j’aille à la banque.

À noter : There is no future subjunctive in French. Even for subjective situations that are clearly set in the future, the present subjunctive is used.

Il faut que tu prennes le bus demain. You’ll have to take the bus tomorrow.

There are hundreds of verbs, expressions, and conjunctions that call for the subjunctive, so it’s helpful to divide them into themes.

Preferences, Advice, Needs, Desires, Orders (PANDO)

aimer mieux que to like better / to prefer that
commander que to order that
défendre que to forbid
demander que to ask (someone to do something)
désirer que to desire that
donner l’ordre que to order that
empêcher que* to prevent (someone from doing something)
éviter que* to avoid
exiger que to demand that
il est à souhaiter que it is to be hoped that
il est capital que it is crucial that
il est essentiel que it is essential that
il est impératif que it is imperative that
il est nécessaire que it is necessary that
il est temps que it is time that
il est urgent que it is urgent that
il faut que it is necessary that
interdire que to forbid that
s’opposer que to oppose that
ordonner que to order that
permettre que to permit that
préférer que to prefer that
proposer que to propose that
recommander que to recommend
souhaiter que to wish that
suggérer que to suggest that
tenir à ce que to insist that
vouloir que to want that

*These verbs call for the ne explétif

Judgments, Emotions, Feelings (JEF)

accepter que to accept
adorer que to love that
aimer que to like that
apprécier que to appreciate that
avoir honte que to be ashamed that
avoir peur que* to be afraid that
craindre que* to fear that
déplorer que to deplore that
détester que to hate that
être content que to be happy that
être désolé que to be sorry that
être étonné que to be amazed that
être heureux que to be happy that
être surpris que to be surprised that
être triste que to be sad that
il est bizarre que it is odd that
il est bon que it is good that
il est convenable que it is proper/fitting that
il est dommage que it is too bad that
il est étonnant que it is amazing that
il est étrange que it is strange that
il est faux que it is false that
il est heureux que it is fortunate that
il est honteux que it is shameful that
il est important que it is important that
il est inutile que it is useless that
il est juste que it is right/fair that
il est naturel que it is natural that
il est normal que it is normal that
il est rare que it is rare that
il est regrettable que it is regrettable that
il est surprenant que it is surprising that
il est utile que it is useful that
il n’est pas exact que it is not correct that
il n’est pas vrai que it is not true that
il vaut mieux que it is better that
redouter que* to dread that
regretter que to regret that
se réjouir que to be delighted that

*These verbs call for the ne explétif

Possibilities, Opinions, Doubts, Suppositions (PODS)

s’attendre à ce que to expect
chercher … qui* to look for
douter que** to doubt that
il est douteux que** it is doubtful that
il est impossible que it is impossible that
il est improbable que it is improbable that
il est possible que it is possible that
il est peu probable que it is improbable that
il n’est pas certain que it is not certain that
il n’est pas clair que it is not clear that
il n’est pas évident que it is not obvious that
il n’est pas probable que it is improbable that
il n’est pas sûr que it is not certain that
il semble que it seems that
il se peut que it may be that
le fait que the fact that
nier que*** to deny that
refuser que to refuse
supposer que to suppose, hypothesize

*Whether to use the subjunctive depends on whether you know this person exists – learn more.
**These do not take the subjunctive when they are used negatively.
***When nier is in the negative or interrogative, it calls for the ne explétif.

Conjunctions

Many conjunctions and conjunctive phrases require the subjunctive, notably those which link cause and effect:

à condition que provided that
à moins que* unless
à supposer que assuming that
afin que so that
avant que* before
bien que although
de crainte que* for fear that
de façon que so that, in order that, in such a way that
de manière que so that
de peur que* for fear that
de sorte que so that
en admettant que assuming that
en attendant que while, until
encore que even though
jusqu’à ce que until
où que wherever
pour que so that
pourvu que provided that
qui que whoever
quoique even though
quoi que whatever, no matter what
sans que* without

*These conjunctions call for the ne explétif
Conjunctions that express a simple reality do not call for the subjunctive:

ainsi que just as, so as
alors que while, whereas
après que* after, when
aussitôt que* as soon as
car since, because
en même temps que at the same time that
depuis que since
dès que* as soon as, immediately
lorsque* when
parce que because
pendant que while
plutôt que instead of, rather than
puisque since, as
quand* when
tandis que while, whereas
une fois que* once

*These conjunctions are followed by the future tense or the future perfect in French, even though in English we use the present tense.
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aimer finir vendre
present ils aiment finissent vendent
stem aim- finiss- vend-
Subjunctive endings
… que je / j’ -e aime finisse vende
… que tu -es aimes finisses vendes
… qu’il/elle/on -e aime finisse vende
… que nous -ions aimions finissions vendions
… que vous -iez aimiez finissiez vendiez
… qu’ils/elles -ent aiment finissent vendent

partir couvrir mettre
present ils partent couvrent mettent
stem part- couvr- mett-
Subjunctive endings
… que je / j’ -e parte couvre mette
… que tu -es partes couvres mettes
… qu’il/elle/on -e parte couvre mette
… que nous -ions partions couvrions mettions
… que vous -iez partiez couvriez mettiez
… qu’ils/elles -ent partent couvrent mettent

 

Quizzes

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