Subjonctif variable
Obviousness, knowledge, certainty, and hope are considered real – at least to the speaker – and therefore do not call for the French subjunctive. Using these verbs and expressions in the negative or interrogative, however, indicates doubt: thus the subjunctive is required.
These are the French verbs and phrases that may or may not be followed by the subjunctive, depending on how they’re used:
| c’est que | |
it’s that/because |
| connaître (quelqu’un) qui | |
to know (someone) that |
| croire que | |
to believe that |
| dire que | |
to say that |
| espérer que | |
to hope that |
| être certain que | |
to be certain that |
| être sûr que | |
to be sure that |
| il est certain que | |
it is certain that |
| il est clair que | |
it is clear/obvious that |
| il est évident que | |
it is obvious that |
| il est probable que | |
it is probable that |
| il est exact que | |
it is correct/true that |
| il est sûr que | |
it is certain that |
| il est vrai que | |
it is true that |
| il me (te, lui…) semble que | |
it seems to me (you, him…) that |
| il paraît que | |
it appears that |
| penser que | |
to think that |
| savoir que | |
to know that |
| trouver que | |
to find/think that |
| vouloir dire que | |
to mean that
|
Par exemple…
| Je pense qu’il est sympa. |
|
I think he’s nice. |
| Je ne pense pas qu’il soit sympa. |
|
I don’t think he’s nice. |
| Penses-tu qu’il soit sympa ? |
|
Do you think he’s nice? |
| |
|
|
| Il est clair que Luc le sait. |
|
It’s clear that Luc knows. |
| Il n’est pas clair que Luc le sache. |
|
It’s not clear whether Luc knows. |
| Est-il clair que Luc le sache ? |
|
Is it clear that Luc knows? |
In contrast,
douter (to doubt),
il est douteux (it’s doubtful), and
nier (to deny) take the subjunctive when they are affirmative, but not when they are negative.
| Je doute qu’il vienne. |
|
I doubt he’ll come. |
| Je ne doute pas qu’il ne* vient. |
|
I don’t doubt that he’ll come. |
* This is the
ne explétif
More French subjunctive
En español
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