X-Nico

unusual facts about subjunctive



English irregular verbs

The modal verbs, which are defective verbs – they have only a present indicative form and (in some cases) a preterite, lacking nonfinite forms (infinitives, participles, gerunds), imperatives, and subjunctives (although some uses of the preterites are sometimes identified as subjunctives).

English subjunctive

The expression "the powers that be" however does not contain a subjunctive: it is a Biblical quotation from Romans 13:1 where it translates a present participle, using the archaic alternative indicative form "be" for "are".

The English modal verbs do not have present subjunctive forms, except for synonyms such as be able to as a subjunctive corresponding to the indicative modal can.

Fantozzi in paradiso

The embrace is so violent and powerful that Dolomites shake, the wolves run away scared and a dam is destroyed (who jokingly refers to orgasm of Fantozzi, in fact, the Silvani, wrong use of the subjunctive Italian as all characters Fantozzi universe always wrong, says, "Fantozzi, venghi!" – "Fantozzi, comes!!").

James B. Greenough

Following the lead of Goodwin's Moods and Tenses (1860), he set himself to study Latin historical syntax, and in 1870 published Analysis of the Latin Subjunctive, a brief treatise, privately printed, of much originality and value, and in many ways coinciding with Berthold Delbrück's Gebrauch des Conjunctivs und Optativs in Sanskrit und Griechischen (1871), which, however, quite overshadowed the Analysis.

Subjunctive mood

The subjunctive mood retains a highly distinct form for nearly all verbs in Portuguese, Spanish and Italian (among other Latin languages), and for a number of verbs in French.


see also