Describe the formation and use of the pluperfect subjunctive

The subjunctive in general is used in six scenarios that can be summarised with the acronym WEIRDOWishes and desires Emotions Impersonal expressionsRecommendationsDoubt and Denial Ojalá (I hope/I pray)The pluperfect subjunctive is formed with the imperfect subjunctive of HABER and a past parcticple, and is used to describe hypthetical situations from the past, as well as conditional actions and past actions preceeding other past actions. HABER conjugation: hubiera or hubiesehubieras or hubieseshubiera or hubiesehubiéramos or hubieésemoshubierais or hubieseishubieran or hubiesen These two forms have the same meaning but are used in different Spanish speaking areas. The past participle is formed by taking the stem of a verb and adding an ending. AR verbs end in -ado, ER and IR verbs end in -ido. Certain verbs have irregular past participles, such as HACER (hecho), ESCRIBIR (escrito) and SER (sido). The best way to use the pluperfect subjunctive is in an 'if clause'; eg. If I had done this, I would have done that. It is followed by the conditional tense, either in present or in the past, which is formed by the the conditional of HABER followed by a past participle. You can also use a second pluperfect subjunctive as this is common in spoken Spanish. eg. Dudé que hubierais terminado el libroI doubted that you (all) had finished the book.eg. Si hubiera trabajado más, tendría más dinero.If I had worked more, I would have more money.eg. Si el gobierno hubiera animado los programas de salud por los jovenes en los años pasados, no habríamos visto el aumento del numero de adolescentes con obesidad. If the government had encouraged health programes for young people in the past years, we would not have seen the increase in the number of adolescents with obesity. eg. Si mi madre no me hubiera preguntado a limpiar mi dormitorio, hubiera salido con mis amigos. If my mum had not asked me to clean my room, I would have gone out with my friends.

Answered by Angella M. Spanish tutor

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