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Spanish 3 Unit 2: Subjunctive with Wishes and Emotion

This unit covers the two most common triggers of the subjunctive: wishes or influence (querer que, pedir que) and emotion (alegrarse de que, temer que). It also teaches when to use an infinitive instead of que plus the subjunctive.

Covers: Verbs of wish and influence, Change of subject vs. infinitive, Expressions of emotion, Gustar-type verbs with que clauses, Ojalá, Decir and insistir: report vs. command

Study guide

Verbs of wish, will and influence trigger the subjunctive when one person wants, asks, recommends or demands that a different person do something. The pattern is main clause + que + new subject + subjunctive: Quiero que tú vengas. Common triggers include querer, desear, esperar, preferir, pedir, recomendar, sugerir, aconsejar, insistir en, exigir, mandar, permitir and prohibir. The idea is that the action in the que clause is not a fact yet; it is only something someone hopes for or pushes toward. That is why the indicative would sound wrong: *Quiero que tú vienes.

The subjunctive needs a change of subject. If the same person does both actions, Spanish uses an infinitive instead: Quiero ir (I want to go), not *Quiero que yo vaya. Compare Ella prefiere estudiar (she prefers to study) with Ella prefiere que nosotros estudiemos (she prefers that we study). Some influence verbs such as permitir, prohibir, recomendar and aconsejar can also take an indirect object plus an infinitive even when the subjects differ: Te recomiendo leer este libro or Te recomiendo que leas este libro. Both are correct.

Verbs and expressions of emotion trigger the subjunctive because the speaker is reacting to an action rather than simply reporting it. Common examples are alegrarse de que, sentir que (to be sorry that), temer que, tener miedo de que, sorprender que, molestar que, gustar que, encantar que, preocupar que, and estar contento de que or estar triste de que. Even when the event is real, the emotional reaction calls for the subjunctive: Me alegro de que estés aquí, although you really are here. Again, a single subject uses an infinitive: Me alegro de estar aquí.

Verbs like gustar, molestar, encantar, sorprender and preocupar work with indirect object pronouns, and the que clause is the grammatical subject, so the main verb stays singular: Me molesta que mis vecinos hagan ruido. The pronoun shows who feels the emotion (me, te, le, nos, les) and the subjunctive verb agrees with the people doing the action (hagan). Students often wrongly make the main verb plural to match vecinos. The same pattern works with any person: Te sorprende que yo sepa cocinar; A Luis le preocupa que llueva. If the person who feels the emotion also does the action, use an infinitive instead: Me encanta bailar.

Ojalá (que) comes from Arabic and means I hope or let's hope. It always takes the subjunctive, whether or not que is used, and it has no subject or conjugation of its own: Ojalá llueva mañana. Finally, decir and insistir can either report information or give an order. Report: Dice que Ana llega a las cinco (indicative). Order: Dice que Ana llegue a las cinco (subjunctive, he is telling her to arrive at five). Reading for this difference is a common test question.

Key ideas

• Wish and influence verbs (querer, pedir, recomendar, exigir) trigger the subjunctive in a que clause.
• The subjunctive normally requires a different subject in each clause; one subject uses an infinitive.
• Emotion expressions (alegrarse de que, temer que, sentir que) trigger the subjunctive even for real events.
• With gustar-type verbs the que clause is the subject, so the main verb is singular.
• Ojalá always takes the subjunctive.
• Decir with information takes the indicative; decir as a command takes the subjunctive.
• Permitir, prohibir, recomendar and aconsejar can take an indirect object plus infinitive as an alternative.

Formulas and rules

Common mistakes

• Using que + subjunctive when there is only one subject (*Quiero que yo vaya instead of Quiero ir).
• Using the indicative after an emotion because the event is true (*Me alegro de que estás aquí).
• Making gustar-type verbs plural to match the people in the que clause (*Me molestan que hagan ruido).
• Forgetting the de in alegrarse de que and tener miedo de que.
• Treating every decir que as a trigger, even when it only reports facts.

Before the test, make sure you can

• Identify verbs of wish, influence and emotion that trigger the subjunctive.
• Decide between que + subjunctive and an infinitive based on whether the subject changes.
• Form sentences with gustar-type emotion verbs and a que clause.
• Use ojalá correctly with the subjunctive.
• Distinguish decir que as a report (indicative) from decir que as a command (subjunctive).
• Translate English sentences such as I want you to... into correct Spanish structure.
• Spot and correct indicative or infinitive errors after triggers.

Words to know

desear

to wish, to desire

aconsejar

to advise

sugerir

to suggest

exigir

to demand

mandar

to order; to send

permitir

to allow

prohibir

to forbid

alegrarse de

to be glad about

temer

to fear

sentir

to be sorry; to feel

sorprender

to surprise

preocupar

to worry

molestar

to bother

enojar

to make angry

orgulloso/a

proud

agradecido/a

grateful

decepcionado/a

disappointed

asustado/a

scared

aliviado/a

relieved

ojalá

hopefully; I hope

¡Qué lástima que...!

What a shame that...!

¡Qué bueno que...!

How good that...!

Sample practice questions

30 more questions like these, from level 1 to 5, are in the practice set.