The subjunctive in English

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The subjunctive in English


Form

The subjunctive in Modern English is easily distinguished in a great variety of contexts where the sense is past tense, but the form of the subjunctive verb required is present: "It was required that we go to the back of the line." Were it not subjunctive, the form of "to go" for something in the past would have been went. Compare with the non-subjunctive: "Everyone knows that we went to the back of the line."
Present indicativePresent subjunctivePast indicativePast subjunctiveto own
(regular verb)I own
he/she/it owns
we/you/they ownI own
he/she/it own
we/you/they ownI owned
he/she/it owned
we/you/they ownedI owned
he/she/it owned
we/you/they ownedto beI am
he/she/it is
we/you/they areI be
he/she/it be
we/you/they beI was
he/she/it was
we/you/they wereI were
he/she/it were
we/you/they were
As shown in the above table, the form of the subjunctive is distinguishable from the indicative in only three circumstances:

1. in the third person singular of the present tense,
2. with the verb to be in the present tense, and
3. in the first person singular and third person singular of verb to be in the past tense.

The modal auxiliaries do not have present subjunctive forms.
In Early Modern English, the past subjunctive was distinguishable from the past indicative not only in the verb to be (as in Modern English) but also in the second-person singular of all verbs. For example: indicative thou sattest, but subjunctive thou sat.
Nevertheless, in some texts in which the pronoun thou is used a final -est or -st is sometimes added; for example, thou beest appears frequently in the work of Shakespeare and some of his contemporaries.

Present and past subjunctive

The terms present subjunctive and past subjunctive can be misleading, as they describe forms rather than meanings: the past and present subjunctives are so called because they resemble the past and present indicatives, respectively, but the difference between them is a modal one, not a temporal one.
For example, in "I asked that it be done yesterday," be done (a present subjunctive) has no present-tense sense; and likewise, in "If that were true, I'd know it," were (a past subjunctive) has no past-tense sense.

The pluperfect subjunctive

Since the "past subjunctive" is not a true past tense, it uses as its past tense what is structurally its perfect aspect form. This past tense is known as the past perfect subjunctive or pluperfect subjunctive; it is formed using had (the past subjunctive of to have) plus the verb's past participle.
The pluperfect subjunctive is used like the past subjunctive, except that it expresses a past-tense sense. So, for example:

• If I had known (yesterday), I would have done something about it.
• If I had seen you, I definitely would have said hello.
• I wouldn't be here if he hadn't helped me.

When used in the construction of a counterfactual statement as in the examples above, it is paired with the conditional perfect viz. "If I had [not] X, then I would [not] have Y". The (arguably) canonical example of the counterfactual actually eschews the pluperfect subjunctive: If I Knew You Were Comin' I'd've Baked a Cake. This should, of course, be If I Had Known… .
If a clause is in a past tense, then a clause subordinate to it cannot be in the past subjunctive, though it might be in the pluperfect subjunctive; however, if it is in a present tense, then a clause subordinate to it might be in either of the two, depending on meaning.
The pluperfect subjunctive is often replaced with the past subjunctive in colloquial speech, a substitution that is commonly considered incorrect. (See prescription and description.)
(Note that by contrast, the present perfect subjunctive — that he have done — while logically and theoretically possible, is not much used in modern English.)

Future subjunctive

A future subjunctive can be constructed using the conjugated form of the verb "to be" plus the infinitive or with the usage of the modal auxiliary verb "should". Note that the "were" clauses result in the present conditional, while the "should" clauses result in the future indicative. For example:

• If I were to die tomorrow, then you would inherit everything.
• If you were to give the money to me, then I would say no more about it.
• If I should go, then will you feed the hens?
• If he should fall, who will carry the flag in his place?

Construction by inversion

Where the subjunctive is used after “if” in a counterfactual condition (see below), the same effect can be achieved by omitting the “if” and inverting the verb and subject.

• If I were the President... / Were I the President...
• If he had a car with him... / Had he a car with him...

Construction using a modal verb

The subjunctive mood can be expressed using the modal verbs shall (should) and may (might).

• Should the teacher come, I will speak with him.
• (May) the Lord bless you and keep you.
• He wrote it in his diary so that he might remember.

The word would (the past tense of "will") can also be used for the past (for example, "He wrote it in his diary so that he would remember"), but it cannot be used in the present or future tense ("Would the teacher come, I will speak with him" is incorrect and confusing).

Usage

As well as being preserved in fossilized phrases, the subjunctive is used in English to express a command, desire, hypothesis, purpose, doubt, or supposition.

Set phrases

The subjunctive is used in a number of fixed phrases, relics from an older form of the language where it was much more common. Some could be misconstrued as the imperative mood. Common examples are:

• if need be
• as it were
• if I were you; were I you
• be that as it may
• (May God) bless you!
• come Monday (Tuesday, etc.)
• come what may
• (May God) damn it!
• far be it from (or for) me
• till death do us part
• God save our gracious Queen, God bless America, God keep our land glorious and free, God rest ye merry gentlemen, etc.
• (May) Heaven forfend/forbid
• so be it
• suffice it to say
• woe betide
• (May) peace be with you
• long live the king
• the powers that be
• albeit (a synthesis of all be it, i.e. although it be)
• truth be told
• rue the day
• would that it were
• rest in peace

To express a command, request, or suggestion

Content clauses expressing commands, requests, or suggestions commonly use the present subjunctive; such a clause may be introduced by a verb like propose, suggest, recommend, move (in the parliamentary sense), demand, or mandate, by an adjective like imperative, important, adamant, or necessary, or by a noun like insistence or proposal.
This use of the subjunctive is known as the mandative subjunctive or the jussive subjunctive and is said to be the most common use of the subjunctive in English.[1] Other authorities say this use is much less common than that in suppositions or hypotheses (e.g. "If she asked for help, I'd help her.") and is often not found in UK English, even in respected news media.
Instead, UK English often uses present indicative or even past indicative − which are both considered incorrect by many people in the UK and (prescriptive) UK authorities on language usage − or a construction with "should". Much time is spent in the UK in trying to prevent this language change well underway in UK English, and the use with "should" is arguably better because not considered as ungrammatical by most. So instead of writing No wonder the Tory Party turned him down as a possible candidate, suggesting he went away and came back with a better public image. as in the Guardian (which would be almost impossible to find in any US newspapers, which would always use the traditional go away and come back), it would be considered less ungrammatical to use should go away. Some authorities like Ernest Gowers even recommend the use with should (in UK English) instead of the untenable traditional forms.[2]
Note that the present subjunctive is used in these cases regardless of the actual time reference (which must be conveyed by the tense of the main verb):

• I move(d) that the bill be put to a vote.
• I ask(ed) that he be shown mercy.
• It is (or was) necessary that we not forget our instructions.
• Her insistence that he leave seems (or seemed) rude.

Some of these words have two senses: one that introduces a clause in the indicative, and one that introduces a clause in the subjunctive. For example, insist can mean assert forcefully and persistently, in which case it introduces the indicative (He insisted that he was innocent), or it can mean demand forcefully and persistently, in which case it introduces the subjunctive (He insisted that he be given the chance to prove it). This use is typically North American English. The verb in such constructions is sometimes mistakenly believed to be a sort of infinitive, contributing to the notion of the dying subjunctive.
Sometimes the verb of a main clause can be in the subjunctive mood, without any explicit word like the above; this carries the force of a third-person request. This is the usage found in many set expressions, such as God bless you.

• America, America, God shed His grace on thee, and crown thy good with brotherhood ("America the Beautiful")
• God save our gracious Queen

The traditional English text of the Aaronic blessing is cast entirely in the subjunctive, with jussive force:
The Lord bless thee and keep thee. The Lord make his face to shine upon thee. The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee and give thee peace.
To express a wish

The past subjunctive is used after the verb to wish: I wish he were here or I wished he were there. This use of the subjunctive is sometimes known as the "volitional" subjunctive:

• Oh I wish I were in the land of cotton.

To express a hypothesis

The past subjunctive is used after the conjunction if in a contrary-to-fact protasis. For example:

• If I were a millionaire, I would buy a sports car.
• If he had a car with him, he could drive us there.
• If I were a rich man...

In the same vein, the past subjunctive is used following the conjunctions as if and as though to express a contrary-to-fact situation that reality is supposed to resemble:

• She looked as though she were going to kill him, but after glaring for a bit, she just stormed off.
• He tried to explain it — as if he knew anything about the subject!

Note that the past subjunctive is sometimes used in expressing situations that are not necessarily contrary to fact:

• ? I'm torn; if I were to go with choice A, I'd be better off in the short term, but if I were to go with choice B, I might be better off in the long term.
• ? Bring an umbrella; looks as if it were going to rain soon.

To express a purpose

The conjunction lest, indicating a negative purpose, generally introduces a subjunctive clause:

• I eat lest I die.
• I'll place the book back on the shelf, lest it get lost.

The conjunction in order that, indicating a positive purpose, also sometimes introduces a subjunctive clause, though it more commonly introduces a clause using the auxiliary verb may (or in the past tense, might):

• I'm putting your dinner in the oven in order that it (may) keep warm.
• He wrote it in his diary in order that he (might) remember.

To express a doubt or supposition

The subjunctive is sometimes used after other conjunctions to express doubt or supposition, although this usage is nowadays more often replaced by the indicative.

• I will not let thee go, except [=unless] thou bless me. (Genesis 32:26)
• Murder, though it have no tongue, will speak.
• Whoever he be, he shall not go unpunished.
• But [=although] he were dead, yet shall he live. (New Testament)

Hypercorrect usage

The subjunctive has sometimes been used simply as a conditioned variant that follows "if" and similar words even in the absence of a hypothetical situation.

• Johnny asked me if I were afraid. (Barbara in Night of the Living Dead (1968))

In the example quoted, "if" is a substitute for the unambiguous word "whether" ("Johnny asked me whether I was afraid"), and lacks the usual, "in the event that" meaning that it has in other usage such as "If we go to bed now, we'll be up at three o'clock".

Demise of the subjunctive?

In many dialects of English, the indicative can take the place of the subjunctive, although this is considered erroneous in formal speech and writing. The similarity of the subjunctive and the past tense has led to the confusion between the two, and the error is evident in various pop culture references and music lyrics.

• If I was President...
• If he was a ghost...
• If I was a rich girl...

However, in the context of the examples above, inversion cannot occur with the indicative as it would with the subjunctive; the following are ungrammatical, except insofar as they could be misinterpreted as questions:

• Was I the President...
• Was he a ghost...

Furthermore, many of the fossil phrases are often re-analyzed as imperative forms rather than as the subjunctive.
According to the Random House College Dictionary, "Although the subjunctive seems to be disappearing from the speech of many, its use is still the mark of the educated speaker."[3]
The subjunctive is not uniform in all varieties of spoken English. However it is preserved in speech, at least in North American English and in many dialects of British English. While use of the subjunctive in natural, informal speech is almost universal among educated speakers, its use is becoming very infrequent among large portions of the population. Some dialects replace it with the indicative or construct it using a modal verb (except perhaps in the most formal literary discourse).
Through the years, some have advocated the formal extinguishment of the subjunctive. W. Somerset Maugham said, "The subjunctive mood is in its death throes, and the best thing to do is to put it out of its misery as soon as possible."[4]

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