Present Subjunctive (e.g.: Il faut que tu fasses tes devoirs)

Overview of the Subjunctive

Written French makes extensive use of the subjunctive, which is simply a special form of the verb that occurs in certain contexts. In order to master the subjunctive, you need to know two things:

a) the subjunctive form of a given verb

b) the preceding verbs/expressions that require use of the subjunctive form.

English, makes very limited use of the subjunctive. Still, it does exist. For example, while one usually writes "I know she is happy", the verb form can change following a verb that expresses a desire, for example, "I wish she were happy". The French subjunctive is similar, but it is more frequent and affects many verbs.

Subjunctive Forms

Let’s first look at the subjunctive forms themselves. For the majority of verbs (e.g. all verbs ending in –er, e.g.: parler, manger, etc.), the subjunctive form is identical to the simple present. For example, je mange souvent and il faut que je mange souvent. If you know the simple present, you already know the subjunctive of -er verbs! There is a slight difference when the subject is either nous or vous since the ending is -ions and -iez (e.g.: ... que vous parliez, ... que nous parlions).

However, non -er verbs always have a different form in the subjunctive (e.g. vendre, finir, avoir, être, etc.).

There are basically two kinds of subjunctive forms:

a) those that are based on the ils form of the verb, e.g.: ils viennent > que je vienne (e.g.: venir, devoir, partir, sortir, comprendre, entendre)

b) the subjunctive forms of irregular verbs like être, avoir, faire, pouvoir and savoir (e.g.: que je sois, que je fasse).

The following tables give the subjunctive forms for some highly frequent verbs:

Subjunctive Triggers

So when do we use these special subjunctive forms? The subjunctive is “triggered” by certain verbs and expressions. Knowing how to use the subjunctive involves familiarizing yourself with these triggers. Some textbooks say that it has something to do with doubt, necessity or desire. This is generally true, but not a hard and fast rule since vouloir triggers the subjunctive, while espérer does not!

Here are some of the most common verb triggers: vouloir, aimer, douter, regretter. Here are some common expression triggers: il faut que, il est possible que, il se peut que, il est dommage que.

Here’s how it works: any time one of these triggers appears, the following verb must be in the subjunctive form. If the following verb is an -er verb, then you don’t need to worry about a special form, e.g.: je veux qu’il mange, il faut qu’elle parle. When it is not an -er verb, then the special subjunctive verb form is used to underscore the relationship between the verb and the trigger. For example,

• Je veux qu’il soit ici demain.
• Il faut qu’on parte.
• Elle doute que tu viennes.
• Il est dommage que vous ayez mal comrpis.

In a way, the matching between a subjunctive trigger and a subjunctive verb form is like agreement between a feminine determiner and a feminine noun, e.g. la nation or between a plural subject and a plural verb, e.g.: ils viennent. Just like with agreement, there are two parts that are working together to convey the same information.

Common verbs that trigger the subjunctive

You want the list of the triggers? OK, here are the most common ones:

• aimer, approuver, attendre, avoir envie, avoir peur, craindre, défendre demander, déplorer, désirer, douter, s'étonner, exiger, falloir, importer, insister, interdire, ordonner, permettre, préférer, refuser, regretter, souhaiter, vouloir

Common expressions that give rise to the subjunctive are:

• à condition que, à moins que, afin que, avant que, bien que, de crainte que, de façon que, de peur que, en admettant que, il est possible que, il est peu probable que, il n'est pas probable quejusqu'à ce que, malgré que, pour que, pourvu que, quoique, sans que

Tricky stuff

* You need to know the main verbs and expressions that trigger the subjunctive, e.g.: il faut que, vouloir que, désirer que, aimer que,  c'est dommage que, je suis content que.

* You need to know the subjunctive forms of the high frequency verbs: être, avoir, faire, pouvoir, savoir, devoir, venir, sortir, partir, finir. Ignore these at your own peril!

* espérer triggers the future, not the subjunctive.

* il me semble triggers the indicative (like penser or croire); il semble triggers the subjunctive (the idea is that it somehow expresses less certainty).

* a number of verbs that trigger the indicative when used in affirmative statements trigger the subjunctive when used in negative sentences or interrogatives (e.g.: penser, croire, il me semble).

* avant que triggers the subjunctive, après que triggers the indicative.