# Imperfect Subjunctive: hablara, hablase

https://langs123.com/en/spanish/subjuntivo/subjuntivo-imperfecto/
CEFR B2–C2 · 2026-10-19 · CC BY 4.0, langs123 contributors (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

> The imperfect subjunctive, hablara or hablase, expresses unreal wishes, remote possibilities and whatever depends on a past-tense verb. The stem is the ellos form of the preterite without -ron, plus -ra or -se: Si tuviera tiempo, iría. Quería que vinieras.

## Cheatsheet

| Point | Rule | Example | English |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Form | preterite of ellos without -ron + ra / se | Quería que hablara. = Quería que hablase. | I wanted him to speak. |
| Irregular verbs | the irregular stem of the preterite stays: vinieron → viniera | Esperaba que vinieras pronto. | I hoped you would come soon. |
| Unreal wish | ojalá expresses an unlikely or impossible wish | Ojalá tuviera más tiempo. | I wish I had more time. |
| Remote possibility | quizá / tal vez present the possibility as unlikely | Tal vez fuera ella. | Maybe it was her. |
| Politeness | softens a wish or a request | Quisiera pedirle un favor. | I would like to ask you a favour. |
| Main verb in the past | a past wish, influence, feeling or doubt calls for the imperfect subjunctive | Me pidió que llamara antes. | He asked me to call beforehand. |
| Condition | si takes the imperfect subjunctive and the result takes the conditional | Si tuviera tiempo, iría. | If I had time, I would go. |
| Unreal comparison | como si / igual que si compare with something unreal | Habla como si lo supiera todo. | He talks as if he knew everything. |
| Other subordinate clauses | relative, time, purpose and concessive clauses that refer to the past | Esperó hasta que llegaras. | He waited until you arrived. |
| Ironic refusal | qué más quisiera refuses what looks like a wish | ¡Qué más quisiera yo! | I wish! |
| Trap | a lo mejor takes the indicative | A lo mejor voy mañana. | Maybe I'll go tomorrow. |
| Trap | the nosotros form takes a written accent | Si tuviéramos tiempo, iríamos. | If we had time, we would go. |

## Overview

- The forms in -ra and in -se share the same stem and the same use. Quería que hablara. = Quería que hablase. — I wanted him to speak.
- Grammars also call it pretérito imperfecto de subjuntivo or pretérito.
- The present subjunctive is in Present Subjunctive: Forms.

## Form: regular verbs

| Person | hablar | comer | vivir |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| yo | hablara / hablase | comiera / comiese | viviera / viviese |
| tú | hablaras / hablases | comieras / comieses | vivieras / vivieses |
| él / ella / usted | hablara / hablase | comiera / comiese | viviera / viviese |
| nosotros / nosotras | habláramos / hablásemos | comiéramos / comiésemos | viviéramos / viviésemos |
| vosotros / vosotras | hablarais / hablaseis | comierais / comieseis | vivierais / vivieseis |
| ellos / ellas / ustedes | hablaran / hablasen | comieran / comiesen | vivieran / viviesen |

- The stem is the ellos form of the preterite without -ron: hablaron → habla.
- The nosotros form takes a written accent on the vowel before -ramos and -semos. Ojalá habláramos más. / Si comiéramos menos, estaríamos mejor. — I wish we talked more. / If we ate less, we would be better off.

## Form: irregular verbs

| Verb | Preterite, ellos form | Imperfect subjunctive |
| --- | --- | --- |
| ser / ir | fueron | fuera |
| tener | tuvieron | tuviera |
| hacer | hicieron | hiciera |
| decir | dijeron | dijera |
| estar | estuvieron | estuviera |
| poder | pudieron | pudiera |
| venir | vinieron | viniera |
| saber | supieron | supiera |
| pedir | pidieron | pidiera |
| dormir | durmieron | durmiera |
| leer | leyeron | leyera |
| traer | trajeron | trajera |

- Every verb keeps the irregular stem of its preterite in all persons. Quería que vinieras conmigo. — I wanted you to come with me.
- After j, the ending loses its i: dijeron → dijera / trajeron → trajera.
- The full table is in Irregular Verbs Table.
- Latin America: In Latin America, the -ra form is the usual one, and the -se form belongs to formal and written language.

## Use: in the simple sentence

| Use | Example | English |
| --- | --- | --- |
| An unlikely or unreal wish with ojalá, about the present, the future or the past | Ojalá tuviera más tiempo. / Ojalá me dieran el trabajo el mes que viene. / Ojalá Ana tuviera suerte ayer en la entrevista. | I wish I had more time. / I hope they give me the job next month. / I hope Ana was lucky in her interview yesterday. |
| A remote possibility with quizá / tal vez | Tal vez fuera ella. / Quizá tuviera razón. | Maybe it was her. / Perhaps he was right. |
| a lo mejor does not allow the subjunctive and takes the indicative | A lo mejor voy mañana. / A lo mejor era ella. | Maybe I'll go tomorrow. / Maybe it was her. |
| Politeness: a softened wish or request | Quisiera ver ese abrigo. / Quisiera pedirle un favor. | I would like to see that coat. / I would like to ask you a favour. |
| A scornful or defiant wish with así, with the value of aunque | Así tuviera que volver a empezar, no me rendiría. / Así me lo pidiera de rodillas, no se lo daría. | Even if I had to start again, I would not give up. / Even if he begged me on his knees, I would not give it to him. |
| An unattainable wish with quién | ¡Quién tuviera tus años! / ¡Quién pudiera viajar contigo! | If only I were your age! / If only I could travel with you! |
| The ironic refusal of what looks like a wish, with qué más quisiera | ¿Te vas de vacaciones a Cancún? — ¡Qué más quisiera yo! | Are you going on holiday to Cancún? — I wish! |
| The -ra form in place of the conditional of deber | Debieras disculparte. = Deberías disculparte. | You should apologise. |
| Alternating -ra and -se in literary style, to avoid repeating the ending | Pidió que se sentaran y hablasen con calma. | He asked them to sit down and talk calmly. |

## Use: in the subordinate clause

| Verb or linker | Example | English |
| --- | --- | --- |
| pedir que / exigir que | Me pidió que llamara antes. / Exigió que le devolvieran el dinero. | He asked me to call beforehand. / He demanded that they give him his money back. |
| alegrar que / molestar que | Me alegró que llamaras. / Me molestó que llegaran tarde. | I was glad you called. / It annoyed me that they arrived late. |
| dudar que / no creer que | Dudaba que fuera verdad. / No creía que pudiéramos terminar. | I doubted it was true. / I didn't think we could finish. |
| si | Si tuviera tiempo, iría. / Si fuera rico, viajaría más. | If I had time, I would go. / If I were rich, I would travel more. |
| por si | Cogí un paraguas por si lloviera. / Llevó dinero por si hiciera falta. | I took an umbrella in case it rained. / He took money in case it was needed. |
| como si / igual que si | Habla como si lo supiera todo. / Me mira igual que si no me conociera. | He talks as if he knew everything. / He looks at me as if he didn't know me. |
| A relative clause with a non-specific antecedent | Busqué a alguien que supiera ruso. / Quería una casa que tuviera jardín. | I looked for someone who knew Russian. / I wanted a house that had a garden. |
| hasta que / antes de que | Esperó hasta que llegaras. / Se fue antes de que amaneciera. | He waited until you arrived. / He left before dawn broke. |
| para que / a fin de que | Lo explicó despacio para que todos aprendieran. / Habló bajo a fin de que nadie lo oyera. | He explained it slowly so that everyone would learn. / He spoke quietly so that no one would hear him. |
| aunque | Aunque lo supiera, no te lo diría. / Aunque lloviera, saldríamos. | Even if I knew, I wouldn't tell you. / Even if it rained, we would go out. |

- Conditions: Conditional Sentences.
- Choosing the tense: Sequence of Tenses with the Subjunctive.

## Typical errors

| ✗ | ✓ | Rule |
| --- | --- | --- |
| A lo mejor vaya. | A lo mejor voy. | a lo mejor takes the indicative |
| Si tendría tiempo, iría. | Si tuviera tiempo, iría. | si takes the imperfect subjunctive, not the conditional |
| Si tuvieramos tiempo, iríamos. | Si tuviéramos tiempo, iríamos. | the nosotros form takes a written accent |
| Me pidió que llamaba antes. | Me pidió que llamara antes. | after a verb of influence in the past comes the imperfect subjunctive |
| Dudaba que era verdad. | Dudaba que fuera verdad. | dudar que in the past takes the imperfect subjunctive |
| Quería que sabiera la verdad. | Quería que supiera la verdad. | the stem comes from the ellos form of the preterite: supieron → supiera |
| Habla como si lo sabe todo. | Habla como si lo supiera todo. | como si takes the imperfect subjunctive in an unreal comparison |
| ¡Qué más quiero yo! | ¡Qué más quisiera yo! | the ironic refusal takes quisiera |