14.2: Subjunctive Mode
- Page ID
- 79301
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Up to this point we have dealt with sentences in the indicative mood, which is the verb mood used to communicate facts. Now we introduce the subjunctive mood of verbs, which signals hypothetical or contingent actions. In German it is also used in indirect discourse (reported speech), to reflect what someone thinks or feels about something, and in conditional sentences (i.e., “if . . . then” sentences). German has two forms of the subjunctive: subjunctive I, which this unit covers and which relates to indirect discourse and some special uses; and subjunctive II, which deals with conditional sentences and which is covered in Unit 15.