Subjunctive or indicative?
Free, no account needed
33 entries linked to the lesson “Subjunctive or indicative?” · Show all
Feelings and emotion
You react to a fact instead of asserting it: what matters is the reaction, and it calls for the subjunctive.
Doubt, possibility, unlikelihood
The fact is called into question: as long as it is not taken as true, the subjunctive applies.
Opinion, statement, certainty
The fact is presented as true: the indicative. This is where the negative forms switch mood.
Conjunctions with the subjunctive
These conjunctions set out a purpose, a concession or a condition: the fact is never taken as given.
Conjunctions with the indicative
These conjunctions report a real fact, a cause or a moment in time: the indicative, « après que » included.
Superlatives and relative clauses
After a superlative, or an antecedent you are looking for without knowing it exists, the relative clause takes the subjunctive.