French Subjunctive After Conjunctions: The Full List

Some conjunctions put the verb after them into the subjunctive every time, with no judgement involved. They all introduce something not yet real: an aim, a condition, an event still to come. Learn the list; the rule comes with it.

This is the third family of triggers, after necessity and will and doubt and emotion.

The always-subjunctive list

Every conjunction below takes the subjunctive in its clause:

Three are the formal twins of commoner ones:

• quoique - a formal bien que
• afin que - a formal pour que
• de crainte que - a formal de peur que

Their relatives (however much, whatever) are on the concession clauses page.

Conjunctions that take the indicative

Half the battle is knowing where the list stops. These introduce something real, so they take the indicative:

Quand, dès que and aussitôt que take the future for a future event: Dès qu'il arrivera, on mangera. - As soon as he arrives, we will eat. That is on the quand + future page.

Si bien que gives a result that happened; pour que gives an aim that has not:

• Je parle fort pour qu'on m'entende. - I speak loudly so that people hear me.
• Il parlait fort, si bien qu'on l'entendait. - He spoke loudly, so people heard him.

One subject: pour, avant de, sans

When one person does both actions, most of these conjunctions swap their que clause for a preposition plus the infinitive, as vouloir does:

With two people, the subjunctive comes back:

• Je travaille pour que tu réussisses. - I work so that you succeed.
• Il est parti sans que je le sache. - He left without my knowing.

Bien que and quoique have no infinitive partner, so they keep the subjunctive even with one subject:

• Bien que je sois fatigué, je travaille. - Although I am tired, I am working.

Avant que or après que?

Avant que points at something that has not happened yet, so it takes the subjunctive. Après que points at something that has, so careful French takes the indicative.

The ne explétif: avant qu'il ne parte

After avant que, à moins que, de peur que and de crainte que, careful French often adds a ne that negates nothing. It takes no pas:

Leave it out and nothing changes: Pars avant qu'il pleuve. means the same.

Read it in writing, use it in a formal essay, and never treat it as a negative. Add pas and you have a real negative with a different meaning:

• Je viens, à moins qu'il ne fasse pas beau. - I will come unless the weather is bad.

Mistakes English speakers make

What to do next

1. Learn the list in pairs: bien que / quoique, pour que / afin que, à condition que / pourvu que.
2. Say why you are learning French with pour + infinitive, then why your teacher explains with pour que.
3. See every subjunctive trigger together on the subjunctive explained page.