What is the subjunctive and when should I use it?

The subjunctive is what we call a 'mood', which is a verb form conveying the attitude of the speaker. By now, you'll be used to employing the indicative mood, which we use to convey facts or statements the speaker feels certain about, such as 'Je m'appelle Alice' or 'Il fait beau'. However, when something is not certain and we want to convey an attitude such as hope or apprehension about it, we use the subjunctive instead. In order to use the subjunctive, we need to alter the form of the verb we're using. For example, the present subjunctive conjugation of 'faire' is 'Je fasse, tu fasses, il fasse, nous fassions, vous fassiez, ils fassent'. An example of a sentence using the subjunctive would be 'J'espère qu'il fasse beau'. The use of the subjunctive here conveys that the speaker doesn't know if the weather is nice outside or not, but they hope it is! Don't be put off if this is confusing at first: it's something that confuses even native speakers. Learning useful phrases that take the subjunctive and using them correctly will therefore make your written and spoken French all the more polished.  

Answered by Rowan A. French tutor

1584 Views

See similar French A Level tutors

Related French A Level answers

All answers ▸

évaluer la presentation du système scolaire dans le film 'entre les murs'


How do I prepare for the French film essay?


How do I know when to use the imperfect and when to use the past historic in French?


What is the subjunctive and when should I use it?


We're here to help

contact us iconContact usWhatsapp logoMessage us on Whatsapptelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

© MyTutorWeb Ltd 2013–2024

Terms & Conditions|Privacy Policy