8.10: Subjunctive

Subjunctive Mood

Instructor Video: Subjunctive

Subjunctive verb forms are generally used to convey desirability, possibility, probability, uncertainty or a wish about some future action or event.

Structure

If we delete the suffix – गा, गे or गी from the future verb forms then the subjunctive verb form is remaining.

Future	Subjunctive
मैं खाऊँगी। “I will eat.”	मैं खाऊँ? “Perhaps, I may eat?”
हम पढ़ेंगे। “We will study.”	हम पढ़ें? “Perhaps we may study?”
शायद वह बाज़ार जाएगा। “Perhaps he will go to the market.”	शायद वह बाज़ार जाए। “Perhaps he may go to the market.”

Notes:

• The subjunctive form of a verb remains the same regardless of whether it refers to a masculine or a feminine subject.
• Three verbs that are irregular forms in future (लेना to take, देना to give and होना to be) are also have irregular in the subjunctive case.

Pronouns	Future			Subjunctive
	होना	लेना	देना	होना	लेना	देना
मैं	होऊँगा	लूँगा	दूँगा	होऊँ	लूँ	दूँ
हम	होंगे	लेंगे	देंगे	हों	लें	दें
तू	होगा	लेगा	देगा	हो	ले	दे
तुम	होगे	लोगे	दोगे	हो	लो	दो
आप	होंगे	लेंगे	देंगे	हों	लें	दें
यह	होगा	लेगा	देगा	हो	ले	दे
वह	होगा	लेगा	देगा	हो	ले	दे
ये	होंगे	लेंगे	देंगे	हों	लें	दें
वे	होंगे	लेंगे	देंगे	हों	लें	दें

For examples:

• Future: शायद वह कल दिल्ली जाएगा / जाएगी। “Perhaps he / she will go to Delhi tomorrow.”
• Subjunctive: शायद वह कल दिल्ली जाए। “He / She may go to Delhi tomorrow.”
• Future: अगले साल भी मैं हिन्दी पढूंगी | “I will study Hindi next year too.”
• Subjunctive: शायद अगले साल भी मैं हिन्दी पढूंगी | “Perhaps I may study Hindi next year.”

Negation of Subjunctive

The negative particle used with the subjunctive is always न.

• शायद वह कल दिल्ली न जाए। “Perhaps S/he may not go to Delhi tomorrow.”
• शायद आज वर्षा न हो | “Perhaps it may not rain today.”

Subjunctive Case in Imperfective and Perfective Aspects

In order to use subjunctive case in imperfective and perfective aspect, a subjunctive form of होना is added as an auxiliary to the habitual, Progressive, or perfective forms of the main verb.

Simple Subjunctive

• शायद हम दिल्ली जायें। “Perhaps we may go to Delhi.”
• शायद बच्चे क्रिकेट खेलें | “Perhaps children may play cricket.”

Subjunctive Habitual

• शायद वह जयपुर में हिन्दी पढ़ता हो। “Perhaps he learns/ used to learn Hindi in Jaipur.”
• शायद वह सारी रात पढ़ाई करती हो | “Perhaps, she studies whole night.”

Subjunctive Progressive

• शायद हम दिल्ली जा रहे हों। “Perhaps we may be going to Delhi.”
• शायद मेरे दोस्त अभी कोई फ़िल्म देख रहे हों | “Perhaps my friends may be watching some movie.”

Subjunctive Perfective

• शायद उसने वहाँ काम किया हो। “Perhaps S/he may have worked there.”
• शायद उसने तुम से कुछ कहा हो | “Perhaps s/he may have said something to you.”

Uses of Subjunctive Case

To express desirability

• चलो आज कहीं बाहर चलें। “Let’s go out somewhere today.”
• चलो आज हिन्दी में बात करें | “Let’s talk in Hindi today.”

To express advice/permission (may, should)

• मैं अन्दर आऊँ? “May I Come in?”
• मैं घर जाऊँ? “May I go home?”

Let’s Constructions

• चलिए घूमने चलें! “Let’s go for a walk.”
• चलिए खाना खायें ! “Let’s eat food.”

Most polite form of request

• आप मेरे साथ आएँ। “Please come with me.”
• अब खाना खाएँ। “Let’s eat now.”

To express probability/uncertainty

• शायद आज बारिश हो। “Perhaps, it may rain today.”
• शायद कल वह यहाँ आये | “Perhaps, s/he may come here tomorrow.”

To express wishes/blessings/curses

• जन्मदिन मुबारक हो! “Wish you a happy birthday!”
• नया साल मुबारक हो ! “Wish you a happy new year!”

Complex Sentences: Uses of Subjunctive in Subordinate Clauses

Subjunctive case can be used in subordinate clause to express desire and possibility.

For examples:

मैं/ हम/ तुम/ आप/ वह/ वे ….. चाहता/ चाहती/ चाहते/ चाहतीं ….. हूँ / है / हो/ हैं कि …

• मैं चाहती हूँ कि आप हिन्दी पढ़ें। “I want you to study Hindi.”
• माँ चाहती है कि मैं डॉक्टर बनूँ | “Mother wants me to become a doctor.”

मेरी/ तुम्हारी/ आपकी/ उसकी/ उनकी इच्छा है कि…

• मेरी माँ की इच्छा है कि मैं हिन्दुस्तान जाऊँ। “My mother wants me to go to India.”
• उसकी इच्छा है कि हम मिठाई खायें | “S/he wants us to eat sweets.”

More expressions

	Expressions	Examples
1	कितना अच्छा हो कि…	कितना अच्छा हो कि वह वापस आए! “It would be great if she came back!”
2	काश कि…	काश कि……. आज छुट्टी हो जाए। “If only today would be holiday.”
3	X को चाहिये कि…	तुम्हें चाहिये कि तुम गरीबों की मदद करो। “You ought to / should help the poor.”
4	यह ज़रूरी / आवश्यक है कि…	यह ज़रूरी/आवश्यक है कि हम गरीबों की मदद करें। “It is necessary for us to help the poor.”
5	मेरा ख़्याल/ विचार (opinion) है कि…	मेरा ख़्याल/ विचार (opinion) है कि आज तुम कहीं न जाओ। “I think you should not go anywhere today.”
6	यह मुमकिन/संभव (possible) है कि…	मुमकिन/संभव है कि वे लोग अगले साल पाकिस्तान जायें. “It is possible that they will go to Pakistan.”
7	यह हो सकता है कि……	हो सकता है कि कल वह आये। “It may be that she will come tomorrow.”

Other constructions requires subjunctive with c onjunctions

ताकि/ जिससे कि……..(so that)

• हिन्दी पढ़ो ताकि/ जिससे कि भारत में हिन्दी बोल सको। “Learn Hindi so that you can speak Hindi in India.”

The subjunctive of possibility is common in Conditional (if…..then construction)

• अगर तुम कहो तो मैं भी तुम्हारे साथ चलूँ (गा)। “If you say than I will also come with you.”

In the sentence with जब तक……न the subjunctive form is generally used (if the reference is to a future action)

• जब तक मैं न बुलाऊँ, (तब तक) अंदर न आना। “Don’t come in until I call you.”

The subjunctive is used in “as if/ as though” clauses that indicate supposition or imagined actions or situations, particularly after expressions such as “it seems as if / as though….” or “it appears as if / as though.”

• हमें ऐसा लगा जैसे हम वहाँ अजनबी हों। “It seemed to us / we felt as if we were strangers there.”
• वह इतनी सुंदर है मानो गुलाब हो। “She is as pretty (that you would think of her) as though she were a rose.”

Activity 1

	Please write two subjunctive sentences in Hindi that express
(a)	desirability	1.
		2.
(b)	advice/permission	1.
		2.
(c)	Let’s construction	1.
		2.
(d)	polite form of request	1.
		2.
(e)	probability/uncertainty	1.
		2.
(f)	Blessing/Curse/Wishes	1.
		2.

Activity 2

(a)Food Recipe: Please write a recipe of your favorite Indian/South Asian food. You have done this before using imperative sentences. Here you have to write the recipe using subjunctive sentences.

(b) Giving Direction: Imagine that you have invited a friend to your house for a party. Your friend does not know your the direction from her/his house to your house. Please write a direction in Hindi. [Hint: Please use subjunctive sentences].

(c) Good wishes:

An interactive or media element has been excluded from this version of the text. You can view it online here:
https://openbooks.lib.msu.edu/ll151/?p=1369

धन्यवाद !