WEIRDO
Many of the verbs and phrases that require the subjunctive fit into the acronym WEIRDO: Wishes, Emotions, Impersonal expressions, Recommendations, Doubt/Denial, and Ojalá. In this article, we're going to take a look at wishes.
Wishes
Wishing, wanting, demanding, desiring, expecting, ordering, and preferring all fall into the category of wishes. Additionally, mentioning the nonexistence or indefiniteness of something that is desired falls into this category.
Wishing Verbs
The following verbs are commonly used to express a wish or desire and, when used as the verb in the main clause of a sentence, will indicate that the following verb in the dependent clause will be in the subjunctive.
Spanish English Spanish English
agradecer
to be grateful
insistir
to insist
no tener
to not have
buscar
to look for
mandar
to order
pedir
to request
desear
to wish
necesitar
to need
preferir
to prefer
esperar
to hope/to expect
no encontrar
to not find
querer
to want
exigir
to demand
no haber
there is/are not
Check out these examples. Note that they all use one of the above wishing verbs in conjunction with the word que.
Solo te pido que mantengas la calma.
I just ask that you retain your composure.
Esperamos que cocines bien.
We hope that you cook well.
El rey desea que cenes con él.
The king wishes you to dine with him.
Quiero salir con un hombre que me compre flores.
I want to date a guy who buys me flowers.
