The subjunctive is a mood, not a tense, that expresses doubt, uncertainty, or subjectivity. It is used in subordinate clauses introduced by a main clause that does not present something as certain. Trigger phrases like "it is necessary that" or "I insist that" indicate when the subjunctive mood should be used in the subordinate clause. Forming the subjunctive follows patterns based on the verb conjugation, with some irregular verbs having their own rules.

1. The subjunctive is not a tense; rather, it is a mood. Tense refers to when an action takes place (past, present, future), while mood merely reflects how the speaker feels about the action. The subjunctive mood is used to express everything except certainty and objectivity: things like doubt, uncertainty, subjectivity, etc. Because there must be some uncertainty or subjectivity to warrant the use of the subjunctive, you will usually see it in sentences that contain a main clause which introduces a quality of uncertainty or subjectivity. If you encounter a sentence with a main clause followed by a second clause, and the main clause introduces a quality of certainty or objectivity, the sentence will use the indicative mood in the second clause, since the sentence will be reporting something certain. If you encounter a sentence with a main clause followed by a second clause, and the main clause does not introduce a quality of certainty or objectivity, the sentence will usually use the subjunctive mood in the second clause, since the sentence will not be reporting something certain. Subjunctive

2. Forming the Subjunctive -ar Verbs -er -ir Verbs

4. For verbs that end in -ger or -gir, the g changes to j when it comes before the letter a. escoger escojaescojasescojaescojamosescojáisescojan For verbs that end in -guir, the gu changes to g when it comes before the letter a. seguir (e:i) sigasigassigasigamossigáissigan For verbs that end in uir, add the letter y before the letter a. huir huyahuyashuyahuyamoshuyáishuyan Forming the Subjunctive- Irregulars

6. Two clauses

7. Two different subjects

8. The word “que” (usually)