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Hello everyone, and welcome to a new episode of Learn English for Spanish Speakers.

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Over the next few minutes, I'm going to focus on some specificities and singularities

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of the present subjunctive, one of the most advanced grammar points in the English language.

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But before proceeding to it, here is a word of warning for you.

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If you're not acquainted with this topic, I suggest that you familiarise yourself with

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the basics of this grammar feature in a previous episode called the present subjunctive part

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1.

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Only then will you be able to keep up with the rather more complex content and examples

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presented here.

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Alright, shall we start with the present subjunctive part 2?

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In this tutorial, I'm going to deal with the following aspects.

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1.

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The fact that the present subjunctive, as a verb, never changes.

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And 2.

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Other forms of the present subjunctive, and more specifically, the negative form and the

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passive voice form.

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So let's begin.

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The present subjunctive never changes.

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In former grammar lessons, you must have learned that we need to change some words and adapt

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our verb tenses when we need to report somebody else's words.

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This grammar point, commonly known as reported speech, features two main characteristics.

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A. An introductory part where we need to mention the author of the words and the reported verb.

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And B. A subordinate clause referring to the actual words.

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And a key feature here is that there must be a verb change in the subordinate clause

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when the reporting verb is in the past.

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So let's compare two pieces of information produced by the same speaker and see how they

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take shape, if you will, when we have to report them to others.

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Next week, all lessons will exceptionally start at 7.15 a.m., announced our headteacher Mr. Walker.

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As a result of this change, it is of paramount importance that you all arrive at the school

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entrance no later than 7 a.m., he insisted.

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Imagine a situation in context where you're one of the students reporting this information

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to a family member or a fellow student who unfortunately could not attend school that day.

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This is what would happen.

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In number one, the main purpose of the information unit is, simply, to make an announcement,

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in this case of a timetable change.

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So when we report this piece of information to others, we simply need to put those changes

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in place so that our message gets contextualized and makes sense.

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So we could say something like, our headteacher, Mr. Walker, announced that all lessons would

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exceptionally start at 7.15 a.m. on the following week.

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In Spanish, this would sound like...

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Nuestro director, el señor Walker, nos anunció que, de manera excepcional, todas las clases

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empezarían a las 7.15 de la mañana la siguiente semana.

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There are no main differences between the English way and the Spanish way here, are there?

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So far, so good.

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So it seems that there is nothing new on the horizon.

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But notice what happens in number two, where the main purpose of the information unit is

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to express that students must observe the importance of arriving at least 15 minutes

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before lessons start.

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So, if you need to report this piece of information, you must absolutely convey the idea that,

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in a polite way, the headteacher is compelling all students to make sure they all arrive

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well in time before lessons start.

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But it is here that the present subjunctive comes in very handy indeed.

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Consequently, the right way to report this piece of information would be...

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As a result of that change, he insisted that we all arrive at the school entrance no later than 7 a.m.

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And in Spanish, this would be...

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Debido a ese cambio, insistió en la necesidad de que todos llegásemos a la entrada del colegio o del instituto

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nunca más tarde de las siete de la mañana.

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Did you notice the word arrive? Not arrived.

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The verb in the subordinate clause does not change at all.

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It does not include the ending "-ed".

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This invariability is not what you would expect.

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And that surprise is the clue for the well-trained ear and the well-trained brain

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of a proficient user of English to spot this nuance or subtlety in meaning.

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Let's move on to the next aspect in this tutorial.

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Let's focus on some other forms of the present subjunctive and how it is realised

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a. in negative sentences

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b. when we use the passive voice

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Listen to the following example in a negative sentence.

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Present regulations require that police officers not enter the crime scene without protective clothing.

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This, in Spanish, could be translated as

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El reglamento actual exige que los policías no puedan acceder al lugar del delito sin vestuario protector.

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Did you notice that there is no auxiliary form do in the second part?

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We don't say that police officers do not enter the crime scene, but that police officers not enter the crime scene.

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Remember that this usage is more frequent in American English than in British English,

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where the auxiliary form should is preferred.

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So, in British English, you're more likely to hear something like

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Present regulations require that police officers should not enter the crime scene without protective clothing.

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And now, listen to the following example in a passive voice sentence.

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A majority of committee members suggested that England be excluded from future European tournaments,

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which, in Spanish, translates as

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Una mayoría de miembros del comité abogaron por la necesidad de que se excluyese Inglaterra de futuros torneos europeos.

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As in the previous example, remember that this usage is more frequent in American English than in British English,

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where the auxiliary form should is preferred.

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So, in British English, you're more likely to hear something like

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A majority of committee members suggested that England should be excluded from future European tournaments.

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Our next spot of call will be the past subjunctive, also called the unreal past,

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which, among others, you can find in conditional sentences, type II,

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and also in expressions like I wish, or if only.

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And this brings me to the end of this tutorial. Thank you for listening.

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So, it's goodbye now. Until next time, keep up the good work learning English and take care.