What Is the Subjunctive?
The subjunctive (congiuntivo) is a common mood in Italian used to express hope, wishes, opinions, or someone else’s point of view regarding an action.
The Italian subjunctive has four tenses:
- Present subjunctive (congiuntivo presente)
- Past subjunctive (congiuntivo passato)
- Imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto)
- Pluperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo trapassato)
In this post, we will delve into the use of the imperfetto congiuntivo (imperfect subjunctive), which, along with the present subjunctive, is one of the most commonly used subjunctive tenses.
How to Conjugate the Imperfect Subjunctive
The Imperfect Subjunctive is generally formed with very regular verbs, having only four irregular stems:
- essere → fossi (to be)
- fare → facessi (to do/make)
- bere → bevessi (to drink)
- dire → dicessi (to say/tell)
Apart from these irregularities, you can easily conjugate the imperfect congiuntivo by following the conjugation pattern for each verb type.
Regular forms
Irregular forms
essere: che io fossi, che tu fossi, che lui/lei fosse, che noi fossimo, che voi foste, che loro fossero
fare: che io facessi, che tu facessi, che lui facesse, che noi facessimo, che voi faceste, che loro facessero
bere: che io bevessi, che tu bevessi, che lui/lei bevesse, che noi bevessimo, che voi beveste, che loro bevessero
dire: che io dicessi, che tu dicessi, che lui/lei dicesse, che noi dicessimo, che voi diceste, che loro dicessero.
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The imperfect subjunctive is used most of the time in a dependent clause, which means “after something else.” For example: “Credevo che fosse uscito di casa!” (I thought he had left the house).
It typically appears in these cases:
- A trigger verb in the past tense (in the main clause)
- Credevo che tu fossi felice (I thought you were happy)
- Pensavo che lei sapesse la verità (I thought she knew the truth)
- Specific conjunctions
- Come se fosse facile (As if it were easy)
- Benché facesse freddo (Although it was cold)
- Prima che arrivasse (Before he/she arrived)
- An “if” clause (se)
- Se avessi tempo, lo farei (If I had time, I would do it)
- Se potessimo, verremmo (If we could, we would come)
- The word “magari”
- Magari avessi una casa al mare! (If only I had a house by the sea!)
- Magari potessimo partire domani! (If only we could leave tomorrow!)
- The verb “vorrei”
- Vorrei che i miei figli parlassero francese (I wish my children spoke French)
The Imperfect Subjunctive with Trigger Verbs
The imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto) is used in dependent clauses when:
- The main clause contains a trigger verb (expressing opinion, wish, hope, or emotion)
- AND that trigger verb is conjugated in a past tense (imperfect, passato remoto, or passato prossimo)
| Category | Past Tense Trigger Verbs | Example with Imperfect Subjunctive |
|---|---|---|
| Opinion | Credevo, pensavo, ritenevo, supponevo, immaginavo | Credevo che non fossi sposato. (I believed you weren’t married.) |
| Wish/Desire | Volevo, desideravo, preferivo | – Volevi che mi chiamassi. (You wanted me to call you.) – Speravo che il tempo fosse bello. (I hoped that the weather was nice.) |
| Hope | Speravo, mi auguravo | Speravamo che venisse a trovarci. (We hoped he/she would come visit us.) |
| Emotion | Avevo paura, ero felice, mi dispiaceva, temevo | – Temevo che perdesse il treno. (I feared he would miss the train.) – Mi dispiaceva che tu fossi triste. (I was sorry that you were sad.) |
| Doubt | Non ero sicura, non ero certo | Non ero sicuro che Marco conoscesse Paolo. (I wasn’t sure that Marco knew Paolo.) |
| Impersonal Expressions | Era possibile che, poteva darsi che, sembrava che, pareva che | – Era possibile che lei avesse ragione. (It was possible that she was right.) – Sembrava che tutto fosse a posto. (It seemed that everything was fine.) |
The Imperfect Subjunctive with Trigger Conjunctions
Common triggering conjunctions of the imperfect subjunctive:
| Trigger | Example |
|---|---|
| Prima che (before) | Sono uscito prima che tu arrivassi. (I left before you arrived.) |
| Benché / Sebbene (although) | Benché (Sebbene) il tempo fosse brutto, siamo usciti. (Although the weather was bad, we went out.) |
| Nonostante (despite) | Nonostante lui fosse stanco, ha continuato a lavorare. (Despite him being tired, he kept working.) |
| A meno che (unless) | Non uscivo a meno che non ci fosse il sole. (I didn’t go out unless it was sunny.) |
| A condizione che (on condition that) | Ti avrei aiutato a condizione che tu avessi chiesto. (I would have helped you on condition that you had asked.) |
| Come se (as if) | Parlava come se sapesse tutto. (He spoke as if he knew everything.) |
The Imperfect Subjunctive with the If Clause
The imperfect subjunctive is frequently used to express a possibility through an if clause (the ‘periodo ipotetico di 2° tipo’). The imperfect subjunctive is used immediately after the ‘if’ (se).
Examples:
- Se avessi più tempo, studierei di più (If I had more time, I would study more)
- Se vivessimo in Italia, mangeremmo cibo più sano (If we lived in Italy, we would eat healthier food)
- Se potessi, verrei (If I could, I would come)
The Imperfect Subjunctive after Vorrei
In Italian, when you use “vorrei” (which means “I’d like to”), and you want to express a desire, you typically follow it with the imperfect subjunctive. However, if the desire is about the same person, you use an infinitive verb instead of the imperfect subjunctive.
Examples:
- Vorrei che tu venissi (I’d like you to come) – desire about someone else
- Vorrei che facesse più caldo (I’d like if it were warmer) – desire about something BUT…
- Vorrei venire (I’d like to come) – desire about oneself
The imperfect subjunctive after Magari
In Italian, the word “magari,” when followed by an imperfect subjunctive verb, is used to express a wish or desire. For example:
- Magari avessi qualche anno in meno (I wish I were a few years younger)
- Magari vivessi in Italia (I wish I lived in Italy)
- Magari fosse qui con noi (I wish he/she were here with us)
So, “magari” is a way to express wishes or desires, often accompanied by the imperfect subjunctive (congiuntivo imperfetto) to indicate the hypothetical or unreal nature of the wish.
