A form for reading
Spanish once had a future subjunctive of its own. It stood for a possible, still open case: whoever should come, should it happen. Everyday speech lost it centuries ago. You still meet it in laws and contracts, proverbs, older literature and a handful of set phrases.
How to recognise the forms
The forms are built like the -ra imperfect subjunctive: start from the third person plural of the preterite and replace -ra with -re. Irregular verbs stay exactly as irregular: tuvieron → tuviere, fueron → fuere.
From preterite to form
Three verbs in the future subjunctive
| Person | hablar | ser / ir | haber |
|---|---|---|---|
| yo | hablare | fuere | hubiere |
| tú | hablares | fueres | hubieres |
| él / ella / usted | hablare | fuere | hubiere |
| nosotros | habláremos | fuéremos | hubiéremos |
| vosotros | hablareis | fuereis | hubiereis |
| ellos / ustedes | hablaren | fueren | hubieren |
The compound form hubiere + participle describes a case that will already be complete at a later point: si para entonces no hubiere pagado means if by then he has not paid.
Where you read it
Laws and contracts
Legal texts describe cases that might arise. That is where the old form survived longest, above all in older statutes and formulaic clauses. English legal drafting has a similar relic in shall and should any dispute arise.
Quien no se presentare en el plazo indicado perderá su plaza.
Anyone who fails to report within the stated period shall lose their place.
Si no hubiere acuerdo entre las partes, decidirá el juez.
Should the parties fail to agree, the court shall decide.
Los gastos que se originaren correrán a cargo del comprador.
Any costs arising shall be borne by the buyer.
Proverbs and set phrases
A few phrases have kept the form and are still alive today, often alongside a modern variant.
Sea como fuere, mañana firmamos.
Be that as it may, we sign tomorrow.
Elevated version of sea como sea.
Sea lo que fuere, no pienso cambiar de opinión.
Whatever it may be, I am not changing my mind.
Elevated version of sea lo que sea.
Adonde fueres, haz lo que vieres.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
Proverb, literally: wherever you go, do what you see there.
What people say today instead
When you read the old form, translate it in your head into present-day Spanish. After si today's Spanish uses the present indicative; everywhere else it uses the present subjunctive.
Old form and modern equivalent
| Future subjunctive | Today | Replacement |
|---|---|---|
| si no hubiere acuerdo | si no hay acuerdo | after si: present indicative |
| quien no se presentare | quien no se presente | relative clause: present subjunctive |
| cuando llegare el día | cuando llegue el día | time clause: present subjunctive |
| si no hubiere pagado | si no ha pagado | after si: present perfect |
