{"id":14350,"date":"2017-06-19T11:33:52","date_gmt":"2017-06-19T09:33:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/?p=14350"},"modified":"2017-06-19T11:33:52","modified_gmt":"2017-06-19T09:33:52","slug":"the-italian-subjunctive-5-pluperfect-tense","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/the-italian-subjunctive-5-pluperfect-tense\/","title":{"rendered":"The Italian Subjunctive – 5. Pluperfect Tense"},"content":{"rendered":"

This is the final article in our series about the subjunctive. Today we’ll be studying il congiuntivo<\/strong> trapassato <\/strong>(the pluperfect subjunctive).<\/span><\/p>\n

Constructing the congiuntivo trapassato<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The congiuntivo trapassato<\/strong> is used when talking about the past to refer to things that had happened, e.g. \u2018I had gone\u2019, \u2018you had finished\u2019 etc.
\nIn order to construct the pluperfect subjunctive you will need to use the imperfect subjunctive of the auxiliary verbs essere<\/strong> and avere<\/strong> (see this article: The Italian Subjunctive – 4. Imperfect Tense<\/span><\/strong><\/a>), followed by the past participle of the main verb. Here are a couple of examples that illustrate how the pluperfect subjunctive is constructed:<\/p>\n

Andare <\/strong>(to go), uses the auxiliary verb essere
\nIo fossi andato\/a<\/span>, tu fossi andato\/a<\/span>, lui fosse andato<\/span>, lei fosse andata<\/span>, noi fossimo andati\/e<\/span>, voi foste andati\/e<\/span>, loro fossero andati\/e<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Finire <\/strong>(to finish), this uses the auxiliary verb avere
\nIo avessi finito<\/span>, tu avessi finito<\/span>, lui\/lei avesse finito<\/span>, noi avessimo finito<\/span>, voi aveste finito<\/span>, loro avessero finito<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

In order to know whether to use \u2018essere<\/strong>\u2019 or \u2018avere<\/strong>\u2019 you will need to understand the rules that apply for the \u2018passato prossimo<\/strong>\u2019 (present perfect). You can refresh your memory by reading my article about transitive and intransitive verb:\u00a0Italian Transitive and Intransitive Verbs – a practical guide<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>

“si diceva che lui fosse stato in America da bambino” Italian immigrants arrive at Ellis Island.<\/span><\/em><\/p><\/div>\n

When to use the congiuntivo trapassato:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

1.<\/strong><\/span> to say what you thought, wished or hoped about something in the past.
\nExamples:
\nsperavamo che non avesse piovuto<\/strong> (we hoped it hadn\u2019t rained)
\nLucia pensava che Maria fosse partita sabato scorso per le vacanze <\/strong>(Lucia thought that Maria had left last Saturday for her holidays)
\nero stupita che tu fossi rimasto ancora <\/strong>(I was surprised that you had remained longer)
\navevo paura che Carlo non fosse riuscito a superare l\u2019esame <\/strong>(I was worried that Carlo hadn’t been able to pass the exam).<\/p>\n

2.<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0to talk about the past after impersonal verbs\u00a0followed by the conjunction che<\/strong>, such as sembrava che <\/strong>(it seemed that), si diceva che <\/strong>(it was said that)
\nExamples:<\/span>
\nsembrava che Giorgio avesse cambiato lavoro <\/strong>(it seemed that Giorgio had changed job)
\nsi diceva che lui fosse stato in America da bambino <\/strong>(they said that he had been to America when he was a child).<\/p>\n

3.<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0to talk about the past after impersonal constructions\u00a0such as era facile \/ difficile che<\/strong> (it was\u00a0 likely \/ unlikely that), era meglio che <\/strong>(it was better that), era un peccato che<\/strong> (it was a pity that), non era giusto che<\/strong> (it wasn\u2019t fair that)
\nExamples:<\/span>
\nera un peccato che lei non\u00a0avvese potuto\u00a0completare il corso<\/strong>\u00a0(it was a pity that she hadn’t been able to complete the course)
\nsarebbe stato\u00a0meglio che foste venuti ieri pomeriggio<\/strong> (it would have been better if you [plural] had come yesterday afternoon).<\/p>\n

4.<\/strong><\/span> to express a possibility or a condition that should have happened in the past following conjunctions built with che<\/strong>, such as a meno che non<\/strong> (unless), nel caso che<\/strong> (in case), a condizione che <\/strong>(on condition that), purch\u00e9 <\/strong>(provided that), bench\u00e9 <\/strong>(even though\/although).
\nExamples:<\/span>
\ngli zucchini sono morti bench\u00e9 li avessi innaffiati tutti i giorni <\/strong>(the zucchini plants died even though I had watered them every day)
\navevo promesso di portarti al cinema a condizione che tu avessi finito i compiti <\/strong>(I had promised to take you to the cinema on condition that you had finished your homework)<\/p>\n

5.<\/strong> <\/span>to talk about an imagined situation in the past following the conjunction se <\/strong>(if)
\nExamples:<\/span>
\nse avessi vinto la lotteria avrei comprato una casa al mare <\/strong>(if I had won the lottery I would have bought a house\u00a0by the sea)
\nse Carlo avesse studiato di pi\u00f9 avrebbe superato l\u2019esame\u00a0 senza problemi <\/strong>(if Carlo had studied more he would have passed the exam without any problem).<\/p>\n

Coming soon: Italian Subjunctive Quiz!<\/strong><\/p>\n

A Presto<\/i><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

This is the final article in our series about the subjunctive. Today we’ll be studying il congiuntivo trapassato (the pluperfect subjunctive). Constructing the congiuntivo trapassato The congiuntivo trapassato is used when talking about the past to refer to things that had happened, e.g. \u2018I had gone\u2019, \u2018you had finished\u2019 etc. In order to construct the…<\/p>\n

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