B2 (Upper Intermediate)Lesson 1: Advanced Subjunctive Forms
The imperfect subjunctive expresses hypothetical situations, unfulfilled wishes, and polite requests using forms derived from the third-person plural preterite, adding endings -sse, -sses, -sse, -ssemos, -ssem to create a useful form for "what if" scenarios and diplomatic communication.
Formation: Take 3rd plural preterite (falaram), drop -ram, add -sse endings
Main trigger: Se (if) for hypothetical situations
Result clause in this pattern: Often uses conditional (futuro do pretérito): -ria, -rias, -ria, -ríamos, -riam
Classic pattern: Se eu tivesse dinheiro, compraria um carro
Wishes: Quem dera, tomara que, oxalá + imperfect subjunctive
Polite requests: Queria que, gostaria que + imperfect subjunctive
Como se (as if): Standard comparisons use imperfect or pluperfect subjunctive
Talvez: Can use it for past or more remote present/future possibilities
3rd person plural preterite stem (remove -ram) + -sse, -sses, -sse, -ssemos, -ssem
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The imperfect subjunctive helps you make more diplomatic requests ("Queria que você me ajudasse"), dream out loud ("Se eu ganhasse na loteria..."), and navigate hypothetical conversations about imagined possibilities. From job interviews ("Se eu fosse contratado...") to relationship talks ("Se você me amasse de verdade...") to imagining lottery winnings, this structure appears in many contexts. Learning it gives you more ways to express wishes, hypotheses and polite requests.
The imperfect subjunctive has a beautifully logical formation. Take ANY verb's third-person plural preterite form, chop off the -ram, and add your endings:
Find 3rd plural preterite: eles falaram
Remove -ram: fala-
Add imperfect subjunctive endings:
| Person | Ending | Result |
|---|---|---|
| eu | -sse | falasse |
| tu | -sses | falasses |
"Se eu tivesse um carro, não pegaria ônibus" (If I had a car, I wouldn't take the bus)
"Se chovesse menos, a gente sairia mais" (If it rained less, we'd go out more)
"Se o dólar caísse, eu viajaria pro exterior" (If the dollar dropped, I'd travel abroad)
"Se eu morasse mais perto, chegaria na hora" (If I lived closer, I'd get there on time)
"Se ela cozinhasse, não pediríamos delivery" (If she cooked, we wouldn't order takeaway)
"Quem dera eu pudesse tirar férias agora!" (If only I could take a holiday right now!)
"Tomara que ele ligasse hoje" (I do hope he'd call today)
"Se eu ganhasse na Mega-Sena, pararia de trabalhar" (If I won the lottery, I'd stop working)
"Ah, se eu soubesse o que sei hoje..." (Ah, if only I'd known then what I know today...)
Distinguish a factual past habit from a hypothetical condition:
Past habit: "Se eu tinha dinheiro, comprava"
Hypothesis: "Se eu tivesse dinheiro, compraria"
The first sentence can mean “when I had money, I used to buy.” For the hypothesis, keep tivesse; comprava can also replace compraria in the result clause.
The conditional perfect presents a past result; the simple conditional presents a hypothetical result. Both patterns below are possible:
❌ "Se eu soubesse, falasse" (both subjunctive)
✅ "Se eu soubesse, teria falado" (subjunctive + conditional perfect)
✅ "Se eu soubesse, falaria" (subjunctive + simple conditional)
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