Purpose

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to form the past (imperfect) subjunctive and apply the sequence-of-tenses rule to choose between present and past subjunctive.

Lesson Explanation

Everything covered in the subjunctive lessons so far used the present subjunctive. The past (imperfect) subjunctive is formed from the ellos/ellas preterite form (Part 3, Lesson 3), dropping -ron and adding: -ra, -ras, -ra, -ramos, -rais, -ran. From hablar (preterite hablaron): hablara, hablaras, hablara, habláramos, hablarais, hablaran.

A genuinely useful consequence: since the past subjunctive is built from the preterite stem, any irregularity in the preterite (Part 3, Lesson 3) carries through directly: tener → tuvieron → tuviera, tuvieras…; ser/ir → fueron → fuera, fueras…

The sequence of tenses rule determines which subjunctive to use: if the main-clause verb is in the present, future, or a command, the subordinate clause uses the PRESENT subjunctive: Espero que vengas. (I hope you come — main clause present, matching the pattern from Part 4, Lesson 4.) If the main-clause verb is in the preterite, imperfect, conditional, or past perfect, the subordinate clause uses the PAST subjunctive instead: Esperaba que vinieras. (I was hoping you would come — main clause imperfect, subordinate clause past subjunctive.)

The past subjunctive also appears, independent of this sequence rule, in hypothetical “if” clauses about situations contrary to present reality — paired with the conditional (Part 4, Lesson 1), directly parallel to the English second conditional and the equivalent structures from earlier-built Gabal courses: Si tuviera dinero, viajaría. (If I had money, I would travel.)

Practice Questions