ahorcar Present Subjunctive Conjugation
ahorcar — to hang
The present subjunctive of ahorcar features a spelling change (c to qu) in all persons: ahorque, ahorques, ahorque, ahorquemos, ahorquéis, ahorquen.
ahorcar Present Subjunctive Forms
When to Use the Present Subjunctive
Use this tense when expressing doubt, desire, or hypothetical situations involving hanging or strangling, such as 'I hope he doesn't choke' or 'It's a pity they hang criminals here.'
Notes on ahorcar in the Present Subjunctive
This is a spelling-change verb. To keep the hard 'k' sound before the letter 'e', the 'c' changes to 'qu'.
Example Sentences
No quiero que me ahorques con ese collar.
I don't want you to choke me with that necklace.
tú
Es posible que lo ahorquen por sus crímenes.
It's possible they will hang him for his crimes.
ellos/ellas/ustedes
Dudo que esta soga ahorque bien.
I doubt this rope will hang (strangle) well.
él/ella/usted
Common Mistakes
Mistake: ahorce
Correct: ahorque
Why: Learners often forget the spelling change and use 'c', which would incorrectly sound like an 's' or 'th' sound.
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Related Tenses
Present
yo: ahorco
The present tense of ahorcar is completely regular: ahorco, ahorcas, ahorca, ahorcamos, ahorcáis, ahorcan.
Preterite
yo: ahorqué
The preterite of ahorcar has a spelling change only in the 'yo' form: ahorqué, ahorcaste, ahorcó, ahorcamos, ahorcasteis, ahorcaron.
Imperfect
yo: ahorcaba
The imperfect of ahorcar is regular: ahorcaba, ahorcabas, ahorcaba, ahorcábamos, ahorcabais, ahorcaban.
Future
yo: ahorcaré
The future tense of ahorcar is regular: ahorcaré, ahorcarás, ahorcará, ahorcaremos, ahorcaréis, ahorcarán.
Conditional
yo: ahorcaría
The conditional of ahorcar is regular: ahorcaría, ahorcarías, ahorcaría, ahorcaríamos, ahorcaríais, ahorcarían.
Imperfect Subjunctive
yo: ahorcara
The imperfect subjunctive of ahorcar is regular based on the third-person plural preterite: ahorcara, ahorcaras, ahorcara, ahorcáramos, ahorcarais, ahorcaran.
Affirmative Imperative
yo: ahorca
The imperative of ahorcar uses the regular 'tú' form (ahorca) but switches to 'qu' for others: ahorque, ahorquemos, ahorcad, ahorquen.
Negative Imperative
yo: no ahorques
The negative imperative of ahorcar always uses the 'qu' spelling change: no ahorques, no ahorque, no ahorquemos, no ahorquéis, no ahorquen.