The Past Subjunctive

What is the past subjunctive?

At B1 you learned the present subjunctive. Now it's time for its past counterpart - the imperfect subjunctive (also called the past subjunctive). This tense is essential for hypothetical situations, polite requests, past emotions, and the all-important if-clauses you'll study in the next chapter.

Formation: two forms

The imperfect subjunctive has two interchangeable forms: -ra and -se. Both are correct and mean the same thing. The -ra form is more common in everyday speech; the -se form appears more in formal writing and literary contexts.

Base: Take the ellos form of the preterite, remove -ron, and add the endings:

Using hablar (ellos preterite: hablaron)

Person	-ra form	-se form
yo	hablara	hablase
tú	hablaras	hablases
él/ella/usted	hablara	hablase
nosotros	habláramos	hablásemos
vosotros	hablarais	hablaseis
ellos/ustedes	hablaran	hablasen

Note: The nosotros form always carries an accent: habláramos / hablásemos.

With -er/-ir verbs: comer (comieron) and vivir (vivieron)

Person	comer (-ra)	vivir (-ra)
yo	comiera	viviera
tú	comieras	vivieras
él/ella	comiera	viviera
nosotros	comiéramos	viviéramos
vosotros	comierais	vivierais
ellos	comieran	vivieran

Irregular verbs

Because the imperfect subjunctive is built from the preterite ellos form, any verb that is irregular in the preterite is also irregular here. The endings are always the same - only the stem changes:

Verb	Ellos preterite	Yo imperfect subj.
tener	tuvieron	tuviera / tuviese
hacer	hicieron	hiciera / hiciese
poder	pudieron	pudiera / pudiese
ir / ser	fueron	fuera / fuese
estar	estuvieron	estuviera / estuviese
decir	dijeron	dijera / dijese
saber	supieron	supiera / supiese
querer	quisieron	quisiera / quisiese
venir	vinieron	viniera / viniese
poner	pusieron	pusiera / pusiese
dar	dieron	diera / diese
haber	hubieron	hubiera / hubiese

When to use the past subjunctive

1. After past-tense triggers

The same triggers that require the present subjunctive (WEIRDO) require the imperfect subjunctive when the main verb is in the past:

Main verb in present	Main verb in past
Quiero que vengas. I want you to come.	Quería que vinieras. I wanted you to come.
Me alegro de que estés bien. I'm glad you're well.	Me alegraba de que estuvieras bien. I was glad you were well.
Dudo que sepa. I doubt he knows.	Dudaba que supiera. I doubted he knew.
Es necesario que estudies. It's necessary that you study.	Era necesario que estudiaras. It was necessary that you study.

2. With ojalá

• Ojalá + present subjunctive = I hope (possible): Ojalá venga.
• Ojalá + imperfect subjunctive = I wish (unlikely/impossible): Ojalá viniera. - I wish he would come.
• Ojalá pudiera volar. - I wish I could fly.
• Ojalá tuviéramos más tiempo. - I wish we had more time.

3. Polite requests with quisiera

• Quisiera un café, por favor. - I would like a coffee, please.
• Quisiera hablar con el director. - I would like to speak with the director.

4. "As if" - como si

Como si always takes the imperfect subjunctive:

• Habla como si fuera un experto. - He talks as if he were an expert.
• Me mira como si no me conociera. - She looks at me as if she didn't know me.
• Gasta dinero como si fuera millonario. - He spends money as if he were a millionaire.

The pluperfect subjunctive

For hypothetical past situations ("if I had done...", "I wish I had..."), combine the imperfect subjunctive of haber with a past participle:

hubiera/hubiese + past participle

• Ojalá hubiera estudiado más. - I wish I had studied more.
• Si hubiera sabido, no habría ido. - If I had known, I wouldn't have gone.
• Dudaba que hubieran llegado a tiempo. - I doubted they had arrived on time.

Dialogue: regrets and wishes

Translation

Practice

Put the verb in brackets into the imperfect subjunctive:

1. Quería que tú (venir) _____ a la fiesta.
2. Ojalá (poder - yo) _____ hablar mejor español.
3. El jefe pidió que nosotros (terminar) _____ el informe.
4. Hablaba como si (saber) _____ todo.
5. Era importante que ellos (estar) _____ allí.
6. Ojalá (haber - yo) _____ estudiado más para el examen.

Key takeaways

• Form the imperfect subjunctive from the ellos preterite: remove -ron, add -ra/-se endings.
• Two forms (-ra and -se) are interchangeable. The -ra form is more common in speech.
• Use it when subjunctive triggers are in the past, with ojalá for unlikely wishes, after como si, and for polite requests (quisiera).
• The pluperfect subjunctive (hubiera + past participle) expresses hypothetical past situations and regrets.
• Irregular stems come directly from the preterite - if you know the preterite, you know the imperfect subjunctive.