If you’ve studied the subjunctive in Brazilian Portuguese, you’ve probably learned some of the usual patterns. You know that expressions such as espero que<\/em> are followed by the subjunctive, that embora<\/em> normally takes it, and that wishes, doubts, feelings, possibilities, and requests often lead to forms such as seja<\/em>, tenha<\/em>, and possa<\/em>. That knowledge is very useful. In fact, using the subjunctive well largely depends on becoming familiar with patterns Portuguese uses again and again. But another situation is especially useful to understand: sometimes both the indicative and the subjunctive are possible, and the choice helps you express a difference in meaning. Consider:<\/p>\n Procuro uma professora que fala alem\u00e3o.<\/em><\/p>\n Procuro uma professora que fale alem\u00e3o.<\/em><\/p>\n Both can be translated as “I’m looking for a teacher who speaks German,” but the two sentences present the teacher differently. With fala<\/em>, the speaker can have a particular teacher in mind. Perhaps someone mentioned her earlier, and now the speaker is trying to find her. With fale<\/em>, no particular teacher has been identified yet. Speaking German is one characteristic the right person must have, and any teacher who speaks German could fit. That gives you a useful distinction to watch for in Portuguese \u2013 if you are talking about a particular person or thing that you already have in mind, the indicative is often natural. If you are describing the kind of person or thing that would fit what you need, without having one specific person or thing in mind, the subjunctive is often natural.<\/p>\n Imagine, for example, that you saw a house in an online listing and are now trying to find that same house again:<\/p>\n Estou procurando uma casa que tem uma varanda grande.<\/em><\/p>\n I’m looking for a house that has a large balcony.<\/p>\n Here, tem<\/em> can describe a house you already have in mind.<\/p>\n Now imagine you haven’t found a house yet. A large balcony is simply one of the things you want:<\/p>\n Estou procurando uma casa que tenha uma varanda grande.<\/em><\/p>\n I’m looking for a house that has a large balcony.<\/p>\n Here, it is uncertain which house will be the right one. You are not talking about one specific house; you are describing a characteristic that any suitable house must have. This is not a distinction between something \u201creal\u201d and something \u201cunreal.\u201d The house you want may already exist somewhere. The key point is whether you are talking about one particular house or describing what makes a house suitable. This also helps with sentences using qualquer<\/em>:<\/p>\n Qualquer pessoa que queira participar pode se inscrever.<\/em><\/p>\n Anyone who wants to take part can sign up.<\/p>\n Escolha qualquer livro que voc\u00ea queira ler.<\/em><\/p>\n Choose any book you want to read.<\/p>\n In both cases, nothing has been chosen yet. No particular person or book has been selected in advance. That doesn’t mean qualquer<\/em> is a word that automatically triggers the subjunctive. The subjunctive fits because the sentence isn’t pointing to one specific person or thing; it describes any person or thing that meets the condition.<\/p>\n This is where learning the subjunctive gives you more than a grammatical rule: it lets you express a distinction that English often leaves implicit.<\/p>\n Fortunately, you do not have to make this kind of interpretation every time you use the subjunctive. Many very common verbs, expressions, and conjunctions (often called “triggers”) regularly take it, and these patterns are worth learning because they make a large number of sentences predictable. With querer que<\/em> and pedir que<\/em>, for example, Portuguese regularly uses the subjunctive:<\/p>\n Quero que voc\u00ea conhe\u00e7a minha fam\u00edlia.<\/em><\/p>\n I want you to meet my family.<\/p>\n O m\u00e9dico pediu que eu chegasse mais cedo.<\/em><\/p>\n The doctor asked me to arrive earlier.<\/p>\n Expressions of possibility give you another useful group:<\/p>\n \u00c9 poss\u00edvel que chova \u00e0 tarde.<\/em><\/p>\n It might rain this afternoon.<\/p>\n \u00c9 prov\u00e1vel que o voo atrase.<\/em><\/p>\n The flight will probably be delayed.<\/p>\n Negation is another important pattern, especially with verbs of opinion and belief. Compare these three sentences:<\/p>\n Acho que ela est\u00e1 em casa.<\/em><\/p>\n I think she\u2019s at home.<\/p>\n The speaker expresses a belief. Portuguese uses the indicative (est\u00e1<\/em>).<\/p>\n Acho que ela n\u00e3o est\u00e1 em casa.<\/em><\/p>\n I think she\u2019s not at home.<\/p>\n The speaker still expresses a belief: what the speaker believes is that she is not at home. The negation is part of the situation being described, so the verb stays in the indicative (n\u00e3o est\u00e1<\/em>).<\/p>\n N\u00e3o acho que ela esteja em casa.<\/em><\/p>\n I don\u2019t think she\u2019s at home.<\/p>\n Here the negation applies to acho<\/em>: the speaker does not hold the belief that she is at home. In this pattern, Portuguese uses the subjunctive (esteja<\/em>). So the important question is not simply whether the sentence contains n\u00e3o<\/em>, but where the negation belongs:<\/p>\n Acho que [ela n\u00e3o est\u00e1 em casa].<\/em> \u2192 n\u00e3o<\/em> is inside the clause \u2192 indicative<\/p>\n N\u00e3o acho que [ela esteja em casa].<\/em> \u2192 n\u00e3o<\/em> is before acho<\/em> \u2192 subjunctive<\/p>\n Expressions of feeling and evaluation are also very common:<\/p>\n Fico feliz que voc\u00eas tenham gostado.<\/em><\/p>\n I’m glad you all liked it.<\/p>\n \u00c9 importante que todo mundo saiba o hor\u00e1rio.<\/em><\/p>\n It’s important that everyone knows the time.<\/p>\n These examples are useful because they show that the subjunctive is not limited to uncertainty. In Fico feliz que voc\u00eas tenham gostado<\/em>, the speaker can know perfectly well that everyone liked something. The subjunctive is simply part of the pattern used with fico feliz que<\/em>. The same is true of some conjunctions.<\/p>\n Embora seja rico, ele n\u00e3o \u00e9 feliz.<\/em><\/p>\n Although he’s rich, he isn’t happy.<\/p>\n The speaker is not questioning whether he is rich. In this use, embora<\/em> is followed by the subjunctive. And with antes que<\/em>:<\/p>\n Vou sair antes que ele chegue.<\/em><\/p>\n I’ll leave before he gets here.<\/p>\n Sa\u00ed antes que ele chegasse.<\/em><\/p>\n I left before he arrived.<\/p>\n Notice that the last sentence is entirely in the past. So the useful thing to remember is the pattern itself: antes que<\/em> is followed by the subjunctive. This is why trigger lists are useful when you treat them as what they really are: a collection of reliable grammatical patterns.<\/p>\n One more distinction makes the subjunctive much easier to organize. First, you identify whether the construction calls for the subjunctive. Then, if it does, you choose the subjunctive tense that fits both the construction and the situation. One especially important form in Brazilian Portuguese is the future subjunctive. Compare:<\/p>\n Quando voc\u00ea chegar, me manda uma mensagem.<\/em><\/p>\n When you arrive, send me a message.<\/p>\n Quando voc\u00ea chega tarde, eu fico preocupada.<\/em><\/p>\n When you get home late, I worry.<\/p>\n In the second sentence, quando voc\u00ea chega tarde<\/em> describes something that happens repeatedly, so Portuguese uses the present indicative: chega<\/em>. In the first, the arrival is still pending, and the instruction depends on that future arrival, so Portuguese uses the future subjunctive: chegar<\/em>. You hear the same pattern all the time:<\/p>\n Se voc\u00ea puder, me liga hoje.<\/em><\/p>\n If you can, call me today.<\/p>\n Assim que eu souber, te aviso.<\/em><\/p>\n As soon as I find out, I’ll let you know.<\/p>\n But referring to the future does not automatically mean using the future subjunctive. In each of the sentences below, the reason for the subjunctive is different. Compare:<\/p>\n Espero que voc\u00ea chegue amanh\u00e3.<\/em><\/p>\n I hope you arrive tomorrow.<\/p>\n Here, the speaker expresses a wish in the present: espero<\/em> is in the present tense, and the hope exists now, even though the arrival is tomorrow. The verb esperar<\/em> introduces the hope, so Portuguese uses the present subjunctive (chegue<\/em>).<\/p>\n Quando voc\u00ea chegar amanh\u00e3, me liga.<\/em><\/p>\n When you arrive tomorrow, call me.<\/p>\n Here, the speaker is not expressing a wish. There are two future actions, and one depends on the other: the call will happen after the arrival. The arrival works as a future point of reference for the second action (quando<\/em>). In temporal clauses like this, Portuguese uses the future subjunctive (chegar<\/em>).<\/p>\n Both sentences refer to the same arrival tomorrow, but the reason for the subjunctive differs: in the first, it expresses hope; in the second, it marks a future moment the next action depends on. The construction that introduces the verb (espero que<\/em> or quando<\/em>) determines the form, not just the event’s timing.<\/p>\n Likewise, the present subjunctive can refer to situations in the present or the future:<\/p>\n Talvez ela esteja em casa agora.<\/em><\/p>\n Maybe she’s at home now.<\/p>\n Talvez ela esteja em casa amanh\u00e3.<\/em><\/p>\n Maybe she’ll be at home tomorrow.<\/p>\n The form esteja<\/em> remains the same, even though the time reference changes.<\/p>\nPatterns You Can Rely On<\/h2>\n
Once You Need the Subjunctive, Which Tense Do You Use?<\/h2>\n