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Tense guide
Pretérito Imperfeito do Subjuntivo (Imperfect Subjunctive)

Language: Portuguese
Tense:
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Practice conjugation drills

Introduction

This verb form is used to talk about past possibilities, wishes, doubts, or hypothetical situations. It describes an action that was uncertain or dependent on another event that happened in the past. It often appears after specific connecting words or expressions of desire.

You use this verb form after past tense expressions of wanting, asking, or suggesting. It describes what someone wanted or requested to happen.

Eu queria que você viesse comigo.
(I wanted you to come with me.)
Ela pediu que nós falássemos com o gerente.
(She asked that we speak with the manager.)
Meus pais esperavam que eu estudasse mais.
(My parents hoped that I would study more.)
O professor sugeriu que nós lessemos o livro.
(The teacher suggested that we read the book.)

This form is also used after past expressions of doubt, emotion, or opinion. It's common after phrases like "era importante que" (it was important that) or "eu duvidava que" (I doubted that).

Era necessário que todos soubessem a verdade.
(It was necessary for everyone to know the truth.)
Eu duvidava que ele conseguisse terminar a tempo.
(I doubted he would be able to finish on time.)
Foi uma pena que você não pudesse ir.
(It was a shame that you couldn't go.)

You use this form after the connecting word se (if) when reporting a past question about a possibility or when expressing uncertainty about a past situation.

Ela perguntou se eu quisesse ir ao cinema.
(She asked if I wanted to go to the movies.)
Nós não sabíamos se ele precisasse de ajuda.
(We didn't know if he needed help.)
Eles queriam verificar se tudo estivesse em ordem.
(They wanted to check if everything was in order.)

It appears after connecting words that show a past purpose or time condition, like para que (so that) and antes que (before).

Eu expliquei tudo para que ele entendesse.
(I explained everything so that he would understand.)
Nós saímos cedo antes que o trânsito piorasse.
(We left early before the traffic got worse.)
Ele me deu o dinheiro para que eu comprasse o pão.
(He gave me the money so that I would buy the bread.)

You can also use it after other connecting words like mesmo que (even if) or caso (in case) to refer to a past hypothetical situation.

Eu levei um casaco, caso esfriasse mais tarde.
(I took a coat in case it got colder later.)
Ele continuou trabalhando, mesmo que já fosse tarde.
(He kept working, even though it was already late.)

Notice that this verb form is almost always linked to another past action. It doesn't describe something that definitely happened, but rather something that was wished for, doubted, or seen as a possibility at a moment in the past.

Further explanations

Conjugation patterns