Present Subjunctive in Catalan

Overview

The present subjunctive is a verb mood used to express wishes, doubts, emotions, necessity, and purpose — situations where the action is not a stated fact but rather desired, doubted, or hypothetical. At the B1 level, learning the subjunctive is a significant step in your Catalan proficiency.

The subjunctive appears in subordinate clauses (introduced by que) after certain trigger verbs and expressions. Common triggers include verbs of wishing (vull que — I want that), emotion (espero que — I hope that), doubt (dubto que — I doubt that), and impersonal expressions (cal que — it is necessary that).

The present subjunctive is formed from the first person singular (jo) of the present indicative, with a set of distinctive endings. This makes many subjunctive forms predictable once you know the indicative.

How It Works

Present Subjunctive Conjugation

Person	-ar (cantar)	-er/-re (beure)	-ir pure (dormir)	-ir inchoative (servir)
jo	canti	begui	dormi	serveixi
tu	cantis	beguis	dormis	serveixis
ell/ella	canti	begui	dormi	serveixi
nosaltres	cantem	beguem	dormim	servim
vosaltres	canteu	begueu	dormiu	serviu
ells/elles	cantin	beguin	dormin	serveixin

Common Irregular Subjunctives

Infinitive	jo (subj.)	Meaning
ser	sigui	be
estar	estigui	be
haver	hagi	have (aux.)
anar	vagi	go
fer	faci	do/make
dir	digui	say
saber	sàpiga	know
tenir	tingui	have
venir	vingui	come
poder	pugui	can
voler	vulgui	want
veure	vegi	see

Triggers for the Subjunctive

Category	Trigger expression
Wish	vull que, desitjo que
Emotion	espero que, em fa por que, m'alegra que
Doubt	dubto que, no crec que
Necessity	cal que, és necessari que
Purpose	perquè + subj., a fi que
Command	demano que, dic que (order sense)

Examples in Context

Catalan	English	Note
Vull que vinguis.	I want you to come.	Wish
Espero que estiguis bé.	I hope you are well.	Emotion
Cal que estudiem més.	We need to study more.	Necessity
Dubto que ho sàpiga.	I doubt he/she knows it.	Doubt
M'alegra que siguis aquí.	I'm glad you're here.	Emotion
No crec que pugui venir.	I don't think he/she can come.	Negative belief
Demano que em respectin.	I ask that they respect me.	Request
Treballem perquè tot vagi bé.	We work so that everything goes well.	Purpose
És important que ho facis.	It's important that you do it.	Impersonal
Encara que plogui, sortirem.	Even if it rains, we'll go out.	Concession

Common Mistakes

Using indicative after subjunctive triggers

• Wrong: Vull que véns.
• Right: Vull que vinguis.
• Why: After "vull que," the subordinate clause requires the subjunctive, not the indicative.

Using subjunctive after "crec que" (affirmative)

• Wrong: Crec que sigui correcte.
• Right: Crec que és correcte.
• Why: Affirmative "crec que" takes the indicative. Only negative "no crec que" triggers the subjunctive.

Confusing subjunctive with imperative

• Note: Many subjunctive forms look identical to formal imperative forms — they are the same! The formal imperative IS the subjunctive.
• Why: This is not a mistake but a simplification: Vingui can be both "come!" (formal command) and "that he/she comes" (subjunctive).

Usage Notes

The subjunctive is used more consistently in formal written Catalan than in casual speech, where indicative forms sometimes replace it after certain triggers. However, after core triggers like vull que, cal que, and espero que, the subjunctive is required in all registers. Learning these core triggers is more practical than trying to learn every possible subjunctive context.

Practice Tips

1. Memorize the top five triggers: vull que, espero que, cal que, dubto que, m'alegra que. Practice each with five different verbs in the subjunctive.
2. Learn the irregular subjunctive forms as a group: sigui, estigui, vagi, faci, digui, sàpiga, tingui, vingui, pugui, vulgui. These are the most frequent.
3. Practice the "indicative vs. subjunctive" contrast: "Crec que és bo" (indicative) vs. "No crec que sigui bo" (subjunctive).

Related Concepts

• Present Tense: -ar Verbs — the indicative forms for comparison
• Imperfect Subjunctive — the past subjunctive at B2
• Formal Register — subjunctive in formal writing