Time clauses
Spanish Temporal Clauses
Why one sentence says cuando llego and the next says cuando llegues, and how to tell which one you need.
One connector, two moods
An oración temporal is the part of a sentence that says when the rest of it happens: the bit starting with cuando, en cuanto, hasta que or antes de que. The same connector takes either mood, and swapping one for the other changes what you are saying.
Indicativo
Te llamo cuando llego.I call you when I arrive.
Subjuntivo
Llámame cuando llegues.Call me when you arrive.
What actually decides it
Not the connector. What decides the mood is the event in the time clause, and where that event stands at the moment the main clause happens.
It already happened, or it happens all the time.
It hasn't happened yet. You're talking about the future, giving an order, making a plan.
The moment that counts is the main clause, not today. In Me dijo que me avisaría cuando llegara his arrival was still ahead of him when he spoke, so the time clause takes the Imperfecto de subjuntivo. He may have turned up hours ago; it makes no difference.
The shorthand, adjusted
cuando + indicativo → presente o pasadoRight
If it is a habit, or it is over and done with, you want the indicative: Presente, Indefinido or Imperfecto, whichever the event would take on its own.
cuando + subjuntivo → futuroNearly
True, as long as you remember that a future can sit in the past. Once the main clause moves back to the Indefinido or the Condicional, the time clause goes to the Imperfecto de subjuntivo rather than the Presente de subjuntivo.
+ que + subjuntivo → futuroNearly
Careful here: there is no such thing as cuando que. The que belongs to the connectors that end in it, which are hasta que, después de que, antes de que, luego que and una vez que. They behave just like cuando, with one exception: antes de que always takes the subjunctive.
Not sure? Work it out
Three questions about the event. Answer them in order and you land on the form you need.
Has it happened already, or does it happen all the time?
Ask about the event in the time clause, not about the sentence as a whole.
Indicativo
Indicative
Nothing is up in the air here, so the time clause just says what happens or what happened. Use the tense the event would take in a sentence of its own.
A habit, or something that is simply truePresente
Cuando llego a casa, ceno.When I get home, I have dinner.
Something that happened onceIndefinido
Cuando llegué, ya habían cenado.When I arrived, they had already had dinner.
A habit, or the backdrop to something elseImperfecto
Cuando era niño, jugaba en la calle.When I was a child, I played in the street.
Is it still to come: a future, an order, a plan?
Look at the main clause. A Futuro simple, an Imperativo or ir a + infinitive is a good sign that it is.
Look at the event again
It has to be one or the other, so the odds are that one of those questions got answered about the main verb by mistake. Go back to the verb inside the time clause and ask again, standing at the moment the main clause happens.
- Whatever you decide, antes de que always takes the subjunctive, even about the past: Salimos antes de que llegara.
- And desde que always takes the indicative, because the starting point it names has already arrived: Desde que vivo aquí, voy en bici.
Which subjunctive tense?
The main clause decides. Find where it stands in time and the time clause follows it there.
Subjuntivo
Presente de subjuntivo
The everyday case. You are standing in the present and looking forward.
Cuando llegues, llámame.When you arrive, call me.
En cuanto pueda, te escribo.I'll write to you as soon as I can.
Subjuntivo
Perfecto de subjuntivo
Still to come, but finished by the time the main action arrives. Take haber in the Presente de subjuntivo and add the participle.
En cuanto hayas terminado, avísame.As soon as you've finished, let me know.
Subjuntivo
Imperfecto de subjuntivo
The future as it looked from a moment in the past. Spain uses both endings and they mean the same thing, so take your pick: llegara or llegase.
Me dijo que me avisaría cuando llegara.He told me he would let me know when he arrived.
Subjuntivo
Pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo
The future as it looked from the past, and already over before the main action got there. Use hubiera or hubiese with the participle.
Dijo que me llamaría cuando hubiera terminado.He said he would call me when he had finished.
All of it in one table
Every situation and the form it calls for. The connector is underlined and the verb of the time clause is shaded, so you can follow the pattern without reading the glosses.
| Situation | In the time clause | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Habit or general fact | Indicative · Presente | Cuando llego a casa, ceno.When I get home, I have dinner. |
| Single event in the past | Indicative · Indefinido | Cuando llegué, ya habían cenado.When I arrived, they had already had dinner. |
| Habit or background in the past | Indicative · Imperfecto | Cuando era niño, jugaba en la calle.When I was a child, I played in the street. |
| Still to come | Subjunctive · Presente de subjuntivo | Cuando llegues, llámame.When you arrive, call me. |
| Still to come, over before the rest | Subjunctive · Perfecto de subjuntivo | En cuanto hayas terminado, avísame.As soon as you've finished, let me know. |
| Future seen from the past | Subjunctive · Imperfecto de subjuntivo | Me dijo que me avisaría cuando llegara.He told me he would let me know when he arrived. |
| Seen from the past, and over first | Subjunctive · Pluscuamperfecto de subjuntivo | Dijo que me llamaría cuando hubiera terminado.He said he would call me when he had finished. |
The connectors
Four groups. Only the first leaves you a choice; in the other three the connector has already made it for you.
The mood depends on the situation
These all behave like cuando. Done or habitual, use the indicative; still to come, use the subjunctive.
cuandowhen
Cuando llego a casa, ceno.When I get home, I have dinner.
Cuando llegues, llámame.When you arrive, call me.
en cuantoas soon as
En cuanto lo vi, lo reconocí.As soon as I saw him, I recognised him.
En cuanto pueda, te escribo.I'll write to you as soon as I can.
tan pronto comoas soon as
Tan pronto como lo supe, te llamé.As soon as I knew, I called you.
Tan pronto como lo sepas, dímelo.Tell me as soon as you know.
apenasthe moment, as soon as
Apenas llegó, se fue la luz.The moment he arrived, the power went out.
Apenas tenga noticias, te aviso.I'll let you know the moment I hear anything.
Correct, but formal. In Spain you will hear en cuanto far more often.
luego queonce, after
Luego que terminó, se marchó.Once he had finished, he left.
Luego que termines, avísame.Once you finish, let me know.
You will meet this one in books rather than in conversation. Say una vez que or después de que instead.
una vez queonce
Una vez que terminó, se fue.Once he had finished, he left.
Una vez que lo hayas leído, dímelo.Once you've read it, tell me.
después de queafter
Después de que llegó el tren, subimos.After the train arrived, we got on.
Después de que llegue el tren, subiremos.After the train arrives, we'll get on.
With a past event you will also hear the Imperfecto de subjuntivo in Spain, and it is just as correct: Después de que llegara el tren, subimos.
hasta queuntil
Esperé hasta que llegó.I waited until he arrived.
Espera hasta que llegue.Wait until he arrives.
mientraswhile
Mientras cocino, escucho la radio.While I cook, I listen to the radio.
Mientras estés fuera, cuidaré de la casa.While you're away, I'll look after the house.
cada vez queevery time
Cada vez que lo veo, me saluda.Every time I see him, he says hello.
Cada vez que vengas, trae pan.Every time you come, bring bread.
siempre queevery time; provided that
Siempre que viene, trae un regalo.Every time he comes, he brings a present.
Te ayudaré siempre que me lo pidas.I'll help you whenever you ask me, or provided you ask me.
Two connectors wearing the same clothes. The temporal one means “every time” and follows the rule above. The conditional one means “provided that” and always takes the subjunctive. In a sentence about the future they look exactly alike, so only the context tells you which you are reading.
Always the indicative
desde que names a starting point you have already reached, so there is never anything left to come.
desde quesince
Desde que vivo aquí, voy en bici.Since I've lived here, I cycle.
Desde que se mudó, no lo he visto.I haven't seen him since he moved.
Always the subjunctive
The event comes after the main clause by definition, so from where the main clause stands it has not happened yet. That holds for the past as well.
antes de quebefore
Vámonos antes de que empiece a llover.Let's go before it starts raining.
Salimos antes de que llegara.We left before he arrived.
Same subject: use the infinitive
When both verbs have the same subject, drop the que and use the infinitive. There is no second clause left to put in a mood.
al + infinitivoon doing, when
Al llegar, llamé.When I arrived, I called.
antes de + infinitivobefore doing
Antes de salir, apaga la luz.Before going out, turn off the light.
después de + infinitivoafter doing
Después de comer, descansamos.After eating, we rest.
hasta + infinitivountil doing
No salgas hasta terminar los deberes.Don't go out until you finish your homework.
Four easy mistakes
All four come from looking at the connector instead of the event.
Wrong:
Cuando llegarás, llámame.Right:Cuando llegues, llámame.When you arrive, call me.
However future the sentence is, a time clause never takes the Futuro simple. That job goes to the Presente de subjuntivo.
Wrong:
Me dijo que me avisaría cuando llegaría.Right:Me dijo que me avisaría cuando llegara.He told me he would let me know when he arrived.
The Condicional belongs to the main clause and stays there. The time clause takes the Imperfecto de subjuntivo.
Wrong:
Cuando llegara, ya habían cenado.Right:Cuando llegué, ya habían cenado.When I arrived, they had already had dinner.
The arrival really happened, so it goes in the Indefinido. A finished event has no reason to take the subjunctive.
Wrong:
Salimos antes de que llegó.Right:Salimos antes de que llegara.We left before he arrived.
It makes no difference that the arrival is long over: antes de que always takes the subjunctive.