📖LearnModule 11 · Lesson 6 of 30Proficient User · CEFR C1, first halfUnit 2 · El subjuntivo, dominado
El subjuntivo — la necesidad y la voluntad
Module 11 of the free Spanish course (CEFR C1, first half), lesson 6 of 30: . On this page: 9 words with their genders and respellings, the rule, a watch-out line, the conjugation table and the audio — the study notes behind the workbook's QR.
The words
Spanish
English
Say it
es necesario que
it is necessary that
ehs neh-seh-SAH-ryoh keh
quiero que
I want (someone) to
KYEH-roh keh
es importante que
it is important that
ehs eem-pohr-TAHN-teh keh
exigir
to demand
ehk-see-HEER
el deseo
the wish
ehl deh-SEH-oh
la voluntad
the will
lah boh-loon-TAHD
que tú vengas
that you come
keh too BEHN-gahs
quiere que yo escriba
she wants me to write
KYEH-reh keh yoh ehs-KREE-bah
pide que nosotros escribamos
he asks us to write
PEE-deh keh noh-SOH-trohs ehs-kree-BAH-mohs
Respellings follow the course’s say-it key; the stressed syllable is in capitals. Print this lesson’s flashcards (PDF) — the words on the front, the English and respelling on the back.
La regla · The rule
The subjunctive is not a tense but a MOOD: it lives after what somebody wants, needs or demands. Es necesario que vengas. Quiero que escribas. Exijo que se cumpla la norma.
Y también · And also
The shape is stable: que + a form built on the yo-stem of the present with the vowel swapped. Escribo gives que escriba; exijo gives que exija — the spelling change (g to j) survives in every person.
Ojo · Watch out
exigir keeps the j in the whole subjunctive: que exija, que exijamos. And es necesario que takes the subjunctive only with a subject: es necesario que vengas — without one it is the infinitive, es necesario venir.
escribir, presente de subjuntivo — the table
yo escriba · tú escribas · él/ella/usted escriba · nosotros escribamos · ustedes escriban · ellos/ellas escriban
exigir, presente de subjuntivo — the table
yo exija · tú exijas · él/ella/usted exija · nosotros exijamos · ustedes exijan · ellos/ellas exijan
Do it now — on paper
Say all 9 words aloud twice from the respelling, then once from the Spanish spelling alone — begin with es necesario que.
Copy every word with its accents on paper; then cover the English column and write each meaning back from the Spanish.
Write out escribir, presente de subjuntivo and exigir, presente de subjuntivo in full from memory, every person, and check each form against the table above.
This free course is the reading half. The writing half — write-in lessons, daily practice pages with built-in review, self-checks and a full answer key — is the companion workbook series, The Spanish Ladder: one workbook per module, fifteen in all, released band by band with the Basic band (Modules 1–5) first.
Keep these words
Turn this lesson’s words into flashcards, then space your reviews — the two habits the research behind our study guides backs hardest.