When to use the subjunctive vs. the indicative in French?

Use the French subjunctive mood to talk about doubt, uncertainty, or emotions and the indicative mood to discuss facts and certainties. If I had to give you some tips to determine when to use the subjunctive rather than the indicative, I’d break it down into three points. We use the subjunctive:

• When something is not real (it is hypothetical) or not sure (it may not happen)

• When using an adjective expressing emotions, judgment, or thin probability

• After certain conjunctions , which must be learned by heart

Like the indicative, the subjunctive mood can also be used in different tenses. Typically, the French present subjunctive will be used, but there is also an imperfect subjunctive tense in French. In this post, we’ll review when to use the subjunctive (in either tense) as opposed to the indicative. Let’s take a look!

One clue for when to use the subjunctive versus the indicative in French is that the subjunctive will almost always be used with “heart” verbs, while the indicative is used with “head” verbs. To help you understand the difference between the two, imagine two worlds to visualize the concept of indicative and subjunctive:

If we follow the logic from above, head verbs call for the indicative, whereas heart verbs call for the subjunctive.

Also, all the head verbs in the interrogative (using French subject-verb inversion only) call for the subjunctive. Why? Because if you ask the question, a doubt is implied.

As you may already know from learning to form the present tense subjunctive, sometimes negation in French calls for the subjunctive. Here are two other examples of negation for which you’ll need to remember to use the subjunctive.

• When using phrases beginning with il n’y a… like

  • il n’y a pas…

    Translation: there is not…
  • il n’y a rien…

    Translation: there is nothing…
    • Il n’y a rien qui lui fasse plaisir.

      Translation: There is nothing that could make him happy.
    • Il n’y a rien que je veuille acheter.

      Translation: There is nothing I want to buy.
  • il n’y a aucun…

    Translation: there is no…
    • Il n’y a aucun candidat qui nous satisfasse.

      Translation: There is no candidate who satisfies.
  • il n’y a personne…

    Translation: there is nobody…
    • Il n’y a personne qui puisse vous aider?

      Translation: Is there no one that could help you?

  • When using the phrase sans que (meaning without)

    • Elle est partie sans que je lui dise au revoir.

      Translation: She left without me saying goodbye.

Use the subjunctive with adjectives expressing emotions or probability in certain contexts, such as with c'est or il est or the verb être.

• C'est or il est + adjective expressing emotions, judgment, or thin probability requires the subjunctive. Objective adjectives, like those shown below, will require the indicative mood instead.

  C’est / il est + objective adjectives
  évident Translation: obvious
  certain Translation: certain
  clair Translation: clear
  probable (<50% chance) etc. Translation: possible

  C’est / il est + subjective adjectives
  bizarre Translation: strange
  étonnant Translation: surprising
  surprenant Translation: surprising
  choquant Translation: shocking
  inquiétant Translation: worrying
  normal Translation: normal
  probable (>50% chance) etc. Translation: possible

  For example:

  Il est scandaleux qu’ils soient partis sans payer.

  Translation: It is outrageous they left without paying.

• être + adjective expressing emotions requires the subjunctive as well.

  The list could be never-ending, so I am just giving you a few examples here.

  être + emotion adjectives
  content Translation: happy
  triste Translation: sad
  surpris Translation: surprised
  outré Translation: outraged
  déçu Translation: disappointed

  For example:

  Je suis heureux que tu sois dans ma vie.

  Translation: I am over the moon you are in my life.

Some conjunctions are followed by the subjunctive and need to be learned by heart. It is about memory work here but also about logic, so even though the list below is not exhaustive, you can decide whether to use the subjunctive or not by understanding the meaning of the conjunction. Conjunctions expressing a goal, restriction, condition, time, or emotion (like fear) will require the subjunctive.

Let’s break it down!

For example:

When using the subjunctive and indicative moods in French, remember the following:

• Am I rational? → indicative
  OR am I subjective and emotional? → subjunctive

• Is what we are talking about likely to happen or exist?
  Yes → indicative
  No → subjunctive

• être + adjective expressing a feeling, a judgment or a thin probability → subjunctive

• Memory work: conjunctions expressing goal, restriction, condition, time, fear → subjunctive

Want to practice? We have created some exercises on the French subjunctive vs indicative for you!