2.7: Grammaire
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The subjunctive is one of four moods in French (indicative, imperative, subjunctive and conditional). A mood is a grammatical term which helps categorize verb tenses. The subjunctive mood is used more frequently in French than in English. It has two tenses: present and past. It expresses several concepts, such as a wish, hope, or doubt, as well as an obligation or a necessity. One such expression which is always followed by the subjunctive is il faut que (it is necessary that ...).
The subjunctive endings are the same for all verbs: -e, -es, -e, -ions, -iez, -ent. For most verbs, the subjunctive mood is formed by dropping the -ent ending from the third person plural of the present indicative and adding the subjunctive endings. Note the similarities between the present indicative and the present subjunctive of -er verbs. This is due to the fact that the same stem is used for the subjunctive and the present indicative; the endings are also identical except for the nous and vous forms. This means that the 'boot' forms of the subjunctive of regular -er verbs look and sound exactly like the present indicative.
Because the subjunctive occurs in subordinate clauses, the subordinating conjunction que is usually included as part of the paradigm for the subjunctive forms.
| parler 'to speak' | |
| ... que je parle | ... que nous parlions |
| ... que tu parles | ... que vous parliez |
| ... qu'il/elle/on parle | ... qu'ils/elles parlent |
| finir 'to finish' | |
| ... que je finisse | ... que nous finissions |
| ... que tu finisses | ... que vous finissiez |
| ... qu'il/elle/on finisse | ... qu'ils/elles finissent |
| attendre 'to wait for' | |
| ... que j'attende | ... que nous attendions |
| ... que tu attendes | ... que vous attendiez |
| ... qu'il/elle/on attende | ... qu'ils/elles attendent |
Some forms of subjunctive look and sound like the present indicative, yet other forms look and sound like imparfait.
1. Shasta, tu avais si faim ! Je suis surpris que tu ne manges pas tout. 2. Il ne faut pas que nous dessinions sur les murs des bâtiments du campus.
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1. présent 2. imparfait
Many verbs that are irregular in the present indicative are regular in forming the subjunctive. In other words, the stem is formed by removing the -ent ending from the third person plural of the present indicative and then the endings -e, -es, -e, -ions, -iez, -ent are added. Following are some irregular verbs, with the corresponding regular subjunctive forms.
| dormir | to sleep | ... que je dorme | ||
| sortir | to go out | ... que je sorte | ||
| partir | to leave | ... que je parte | ||
| lire | to read | ... que je lise | ||
| sourire | to smile | ... que je sourie | ||
| dire | to say | ... que je dise | ||
| écrire | to write | ... que j'écrive | ||
| mettre | to put | ... que je mette | ||
| connaître | to know | ... que je connaisse |
1. Astérix et Obélix, il ne faut pas que vous .... (dire) de gros mots ! 2. Mon prof de français est le meilleur enseignant que je .... (connaître) ! 3. Le professeur exige que les étudiants ... (écrire) un texte au subjonctif.
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1. disiez 2. connaisse 3. écrivent
Some irregular verbs have two stems in the subjunctive. These verbs have a similar two-stem irregularity in the present indicative (for example, 'ils viennent' BUT 'nous venons'). The boot stem (for the forms je, tu, il / elle, ils / elles) is the third person plural of the present indicative, the very same as the stem for regular formation of the subjunctive. The first person plural of the present indicative provides the second stem for the 'nous' and 'vous' forms of the subjunctive. The regular subjunctive endings are added to these two stems.
| venir 'to come' | |
| que je vienne | que nous venions |
| que tu viennes | que vous veniez |
| qu'il / elle / on vienne | qu'ils / elles viennent |
In addition to venir, here is a list of the most frequent verbs with two stems in the subjunctive:
| infinitive | boot stem, for: je, tu, il/elle/on, ils/elles |
2nd stem, for: nous, vous |
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| aller (to go) | que j'aille | que nous allions | ||
| boire (to drink) | que je boive | que nous buvions | ||
| croire (to believe) | que je croie | que nous croyions | ||
| devoir (to have to) | que je doive | que nous devions | ||
| mourir (to die) | que je meure | que nous mourions | ||
| prendre (to take) | que je prenne | que nous prenions | ||
| recevoir (to receive) | que je reçoive | que nous recevions | ||
| tenir (to hold) | que je tienne | que nous tenions | ||
| voir (to see) | que je voie | que nous voyions | ||
| vouloir (to want) | que je veuille | que nous voulions | ||
1. Shasta est heureux que les étudiants de UH ..... (obtenir) de bonnes notes. 2. Idéfix, il faut que tu .... (aller) au stade avec Shasta. 3. Astérix et Obélix, il est nécessaire que vous .... (boire) beaucoup de potion magique. C'est bon contre les Romains!
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1. obtiennent 2. ailles 3. buviez
Avoir and être are highly irregular in the subjunctive and must be memorized. Note that the 'nous' and 'vous' forms are spelled with the letter y (instead of the i characteristic of the regular subjunctive endings). Note in particular the pronunciation of the subjunctive forms of avoir, which have the same vowel sound as found in j'ai (I have), the first person singular in the present indicative.
The verbs faire, savoir and pouvoir have completely irregular stems. The endings, however, are regular.
| avoir 'to have' | |
| que j'aie | que nous ayons |
| que tu aies | que vous ayez |
| qu'il / elle / on ait | qu'ils / elles aient |
| être 'to be' | |
| que je sois | que nous soyons |
| que tu sois | que vous soyez |
| qu'il / elle / on soit | qu'ils / elles soient |
| faire 'to do' | |
| que je fasse | que nous fassions |
| que tu fasses | que vous fassiez |
| qu'il / elle / on fasse | qu'ils / elles fassent |
| infinitive | first person present subjunctive | |
| savoir (to know) | que je sache | |
| pouvoir (to be able) | que je puisse |
The subjunctive is required after impersonal expressions of necessity and obligation. An impersonal expression is any expression introduced by the impersonal pronoun il, usually translated into English by 'it'. One of the most frequent is il faut que (it is necessary to). When the main clause uses il faut que, the verb of the dependent clause which follows must be in the subjunctive. Note that there are always two different subjects in the two clauses.
Example: Il faut que tu sois à l'heure à ton cours.
Note that the expression il faut que is stronger and more emphatic than the verb 'devoir' (which is followed by an infinitive): Shasta doit choisir le vin (Shasta must / is supposed to choose the wine).
Below are other common impersonal expressions of obligation and necessity. Note that they are all followed by the conjunction que which introduces a subordinate clause with a verb in the subjunctive:
| il est important que, it is important that |
| il est nécessaire que, it is necessary that |
| il est essentiel que, it is essential that |
| il est inévitable que, it is unavoidable that |
| il vaut mieux que, it is better that |
| il est préférable que, it is preferable that |
| il est indispensable que, it is indispensible that |
1. Il est essentiel que vous ..... (se concentrer) bien sur ce devoir 2. Il est important que Shasta .... (faire) du sport tous les jours.
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1. que vous vous concentriez 2. fasse
This page is an adoptation of Francais Interactif. For more information, see the following links:
https://www.laits.utexas.edu/tex/gr/tas1.html