We use El Imperfecto Subjuntivo in some subordinate clauses and in particularly polite requests.
Rather unusually, this tense has two conjugation forms. Take a look at haber conjugated in El Imperfecto Subjuntivo:
Conjugation 1 (used widely in speech in Spain, Latin America and South America)
| yo | hubiera |
| tú | hubieras |
| él / ella / Ud. | hubiera |
| nosotros | hubiéramos |
| vosotros | hubierais |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | hubieran |
Conjugation 2 (used more in written language and in Spain)
| yo | hubiese |
| tú | hubieses |
| él / ella / Ud. | hubiese |
| nosotros | hubiésemos |
| vosotros | hubieseis |
| ellos / ellas / Uds. | hubiesen |
Note that in El Imperfecto Subjuntivo, only the impersonal third person form hubiera/hubiese is ever used on its own.
Read and listen to these examples:
The full set of six forms is used with past participles of a second verb to form another tense: El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo. For example:
Read more about El Pretérito Pluscuamperfecto de Subjuntivo.
See also:
Want to make sure your Spanish sounds confident? We’ll map your knowledge and give you free lessons to focus on your gaps and mistakes. Start your Braimap today »
