Portuguese Future Subjunctive (Futuro do Conjuntivo) – Conjugation and Usage

If you have been learning Portuguese long enough, you know that sooner or later you’ve got to come to grips with the Future Subjunctive (Futuro do Conjuntivo).

Why? The answer is simple: we use it all the time.

So, when do we use the Future Subjunctive in Portuguese? In short, we use the Future Subjunctive when referring to possible scenarios in a future time.

Let’s dive in.

Related reads!
• Portuguese Present Subjunctive (Presente do Conjuntivo): Conjugation and Usage
• Portuguese Past Subjunctive (Passado do Conjuntivo): Conjugation and Usage

Conjugation

Regular verbs

For any  regular verb, you start with the infinitive form and add the following endings (marked in bold):

	Pintar (1st conj.)	Mexer (2nd conj.)	Atrair (3rd conj.)
Eu	pintar	mexer	atrair
Tu	pintares	mexeres	atraires
Você Ele, ela	pintar	mexer	atrair
Nós	pintarmos	mexermos	atrairmos
Vocês Eles, elas,	pintarem	mexerem	atrairem

The verb forms of the Future Subjunctive and the Personal Infinitive are the same for regular verbs. Learn more about the Personal Infinitive: Personal Infinitive: What Is It and When to Use It.

Irregular verbs

The Future Subjunctive endings are the same for irregular verbs. 

However, instead of going from the infinitive form, you start with the  3-person plural of the Preterite tense (Pretérito Perfeito), and replace the -am ending with Future Subjunctive endings:

	Ser foram	Fazer fizeram	Pôr puseram
Eu	for	fizer	puser
Tu	fores	fizeres	puseres
Você Ele, ela	for	fizer	puser
Nós	formos	fizermos	pusermos
Vocês Eles, elas	forem	fizerem	puserem

Usage

Conditional clauses

We use the Future Subjunctive in conditional clauses* introduced by se. 

Note that, in opposition to the Past Subjunctive,  the Future Subjunctive points toward a time ahead and implies realistic expectations (provided that the condition is fulfilled):