Conjuntivo

Conjuntivo is the term used in Spanish and Portuguese grammar for the subjunctive mood, a verbal mood used to express events or states that are not asserted as factual. It governs subordinate clauses and conveys wishes, emotions, doubts, possibilities, hypothetical situations, and necessity. The conjuntivo derives from Latin subjunctive and has cognates in other Romance languages, such as congiuntivo in Italian and subjonctif in French. Its main function is to indicate modality rather than exact time.

Forms and usage vary by language but share a common purpose: to mark non-real content and attitude toward the proposition. In Spanish, common forms include the present subjunctive (hablar → hable), the imperfect subjunctive (hablara or hablase), and compound tenses formed with haber (haya hablado, hubiera hablado). In Portuguese, there are present and imperfect subjunctive forms (que eu fale, se eu falasse) and their compound equivalents. The conjuntivo is typically required after verbs of desire, preference, or emotion (querer, desejar, temer), after negation, and in clauses introduced by que following conjunctions such as para que, a menos que, antes de que.

Examples illustrate its use: "Quiero que vengas" (I want you to come); "Si fuera rico, compraría una casa" (If I were rich, I would buy a house); "Aunque llueva, iremos" (Even if it rains, we will go); "Es posible que llueva" (It is possible that it may rain). In everyday speech, the subjunctive may be replaced by more colloquial forms in some dialects, but in formal writing the conjuntivo remains essential for clear expression of attitude and temporality in dependent clauses.