Pluperfect Subjunctive

Spanish subjunctive
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Pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo

The pluperfect tense of the subjunctive mood is used to express the same subjectivity as the present subjunctive, but, like the pluperfect indicative, at a point before another action in the past.

The pluperfect subjunctive is used in three main ways:

1. To express subjectivity in the past after the same verbs, impersonal expressions, and conjunctions as the present subjunctive. For the pluperfect subjunctive to be needed, the verb in the main clause has to be in one of the following tenses/moods: preterite, imperfect, or conditional.

Quería que tú lo hubieras hecho.   I wanted you to do it.
Fue una lástima que no hubiera podido venir.   It was too bad that he couldn’t come.
Estaba triste de oír que su padre hubiera muerto.   It was sad to hear that his father had died.

2. To express a wish, after ojalá, that something had happened differently in the past.

Ojalá hubiera ido.   I wish he had come.
Ojalá hubiéramos podido verlo.   If only we could have seen it.

3. In conditional sentences (si clauses).

Si hubiera sabido, hubiera ido contigo.   If I had known, I would have gone with you.
¿Hubieras comprado el libro si te hubiera dicho?   Would you have bought the book if I had told you?

Pluperfect subjunctive conjugations

The pluperfect subjunctive is a compound verb formed with the imperfect subjunctive of the auxiliary verb haber + the past participle of the main verb. Remember that the imperfect subjunctive has two sets of conjugations, thus the pluperfect subjunctive also has two sets of conjugations.

-RA conjugation of TENER

yo hubiera tenido    nosotros hubiéramos tenido
hubieras tenido vosotros hubierais tenido
él hubiera tenido ellos hubieran tenido
  

-SE conjugation of TENER

yo hubiese tenido nosotros hubiésemos tenido
hubieses tenido vosotros hubieseis tenido
él hubiese tenido ellos hubiesen tenido

More Spanish Subjunctive

Conjugations

Usage

Spanish Subjunctive Tenses

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Spanish subjunctive

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